Date-stamped : 25 Apr95 - 22:38 Benson and Hedges Round 2: Hampshire v Gloucestershire Southampton, 25 April 1995 Smith has the perfect answer for doubters - C.Martin-Jenkins Gloucs (166-6) bt Hants (162) by 4 wkts NO COUNTY has been written off for all competitions this season with quite such confidence as Gloucestershire, but if they bowl and field as well as they did at Southampton yesterday their in- terest in the Benson & Hedges Cup should extend at least to the quarter-final stage at the end of May. Just about everything went right for them, it is true, from the moment that Jack Russell won the toss, but they took their chances and Hampshire, despite Heath Streak`s catch of the day, missed some of theirs. A pitch with a bit in it for swing, seam and spin bowlers - indeed out-and-out fast ones too - made for an absorbing, low- scoring game. Although only two Hampshire batsmen got to 20, their total of 162 in 55 overs - the last wicket fell off the last ball - was sufficient for them to make Gloucestershire sweat until the 51st over. The Australian-bred confidence and assertion, not to mention the native Anglo-West Indian skill, of Andrew Symonds hastened the end. He will not always be able to play with such abandon but his 33 off 25 balls, including a six off the hitherto dominant Streak, made sure that there was no Gloucestershire calamity. Tony Wright and Bobby Dawson had painstakingly laid their base, only to fall in successive overs to Martin Thursfield`s away swing. Mike Smith, swinging his briskish left-arm medium to great ef- fect, took the first three wickets for 19 in seven overs. It became even more one-sided, apparently, when Robin Smith, nicely played in, was run out by a swoop and direct hit under-arm by Symonds from midwicket. They practise these things in Aus- tralia, both inside and outside the Cricket Academy. County cricket, meanwhile, continues to provide a convenient finishing- school for rising young overseas players. Smith won the Gold Award and deserved it for his career-best per- formance in this competition, though the ground was well prepared for him by the wily old campaigner Kevin Cooper and his new open- ing partner, Javagal Srinath. The Indian`s quality has been one of cricket`s better-kept secrets. He is fluent, quick and accu- rate and with Symonds he should make up for Courtney Walsh`s ab- sence. Smith took three of his wickets with the help of Russell`s sharp- ness behind the stumps - his low catch to his left to dismiss Kevan James the best of them. It reduced Hampshire to 110 for six in the 48th over but the stocky left-hander Paul Whitaker timed the ball well and played a valuable, level-headed innings until Monte Lynch dived low at mid-wicket to catch him. Lynch`s batting was less impressive. After Streak, strong as a bull, had taken a stunning return catch, flinging himself to his right to catch Tim Hancock, he was hurried for pace and could only nick a ball which left him into Paul Terry`s safe hands at second slip. But Wright and Dawson got their heads down and rode their luck. Two possible catches and a tricky stumping chance were not taken and though Mark Nicholas switched his bowlers around - including John Stephenson, whose correct bowling average, begging his par- don, is 33 not 36 - it was emphatically Gloucester`s day. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com)