Devon Cricket Board - Bess leads Devon fightback with four wickets

Bess leads Devon fightback with four wickets

DEVON fought back before tea on the second day of their game against Wiltshire at Exmouth.

Not for the first time this season Devon were glad of some depth in their batting as they needed rescuing from 73 for five when Matt Thompson was out for 34 before lunch.

Skipper Josh Bess (35) and Rhys Davies (51) added 103 for the sixth wicket, then both went eight runs apart as Devon slowed to 184 for seven.

Sandy Allen (30) and Matt Golding (27) kept the board going round – and when Allen was caught at short mid-off playing a rash stroke Golding carried on grinding it out with Trevor Anning.

A stand of 69 for the ninth wicket is always handy, which is what it stood at when Golding was dismissed by a catch in the slips.

Anning went four balls later, caught on the drive, having made 37.

Devon were all out for 286, which meant they trailed by 71 on first innings.

Wiltshire had to bat for 11 overs before tea and lost three wickets adding 25 to their lead.

First-day centurion Toby Davies was caught in the slips off Anning for a duck, then Josh Bess trapped opposite number Joe Breet lbw for nine.

Jayden Levitt departed caught and bowled to a stooping Bess as Wilts subsided to 18 for three.

It didn’t get any better after tea for Wiltshire as they lost Ashur Morrison to Bess two balls into the last session.

Bess picked up his fourth wicket two overs later when he had Harry Langford caught behind, leaving Wiltshire 106 ahead on 35 for five.

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