Somerset beat Glamorgan in a record-breaking run feast at Cardiff

Somerset beat Glamorgan by 7 wickets in a remarkable Twenty20 match at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff that saw 390 runs scored in just 38 overs, and all despite steady drizzle that fell throughout what turned out to be a quite amazing match.

Glamorgan won the toss and elected to bat first, with Robert Croft and Matthew Maynard blasting 53 in just 4.5 overs before Croft departed for a quickfire 28. Ian Thomas was then unluckily run out backing up without facing a ball, before Mike Powell fell leg before to Keith Parsons for 8. Two overs later Matthew Maynard departed for 39, and Glamorgan had reached 81-4 in just the 9th over.

David Hemp maintained the momentum, scoring an unbeaten 49 off just 33 balls, and with useful support from the lower order, Glamorgan reached 193-7 at the end of their 20 over allocation - the highest so far in the new competition, passing the score of 188/7 that Warwickshire had made against the Somerset bowlers last Friday night at Taunton.

However, the new record lasted a mere 70 minutes, as Somerset galloped past the target with two overs in hand. Jamie Cox and Carl Gazzard set the tone with a remarkable opening partnership, adding 61 in just 4 overs as Cox raced to a 19 ball half-century with 11 crisply struck fours and a huge six off fellow Australian Michael Kasprowicz, who was struck for 25 runs in his third over.

Gazzard also unfurled some scintillating strokes, and Somerset`s reserve wicket-keeper had struck 6 fours from just 10 balls when he chipped Adrian Dale into the hands of Robert Croft at mid-on. Dale then removed Jamie Cox who was caught behind by Mark Wallace for 53 off just 21 balls.

Keith Dutch, who had struck 70 in Somerset`s first game, kept the scoring rate in double figures with 8 further boundaries as the Glamorgan attack found it difficult to maintain any semblance of control in the damp and slippery conditions. Dutch was in sight of his second hal-century when Keith Parsons hit Adrian Dale to the long-leg boundary as Somerset romped home with 7 wickets in hand and still 12 balls to go.

Somerset`s total of 197-3 became the highest in the new competition, and after this plethora of runs, the rain soaked crowd, that included many schoolchildren, must have gone home rather damp, but very happy after witnessing such a remarkable contest that saw almost 400 runs being scored in just 145 minutes.