The rare occurrence of twin failures for Jacques Rudolph has resulted in Glamorgan staring defeat in the face after just two days of play in Derby, reports Gareth Stevens.

The Welsh club were inserted on a sporty wicket and their banker, Rudolph was back in the hut for just one. Zimbabwean Murray Goodwin top scored with 44, but his efforts could only guide the innings to a below par 138.

In reply, Wayne Madsen chipped in with 18, but it was the handy contributions from the tail-enders that pushed Derbyshire’s total up to 241. The lead was significant on a deck playing all sorts of tricks.

Rudolph got to 11 in his second dig before a Mark Footitt delivery exploded off a length, hit the bat’s handle and looped back to the bowler who accepted the return catch. Once again nobody got going in the tough conditions. Glamorgan eventually succumbed to 175 all out, setting Derbyshire a target of just 73.

The chase got off to a poor start on the evening of the second day with opener Billy Godleman falling for a duck. Madsen came in at No 3 and safely negotiated the final overs. He will resume on 9, with his side requiring another 60 runs for victory on the morning of day three.

Elsewhere, Yorkshire lead Middlesex by 421 runs with five wickets in hand going into the final day at Scarborough. Yorkshire scraped to 253 in their first innings before Dawid Malan’s 78 helped Middlesex reach 232.

The pitch eased up as only four wickets fell on day three, compared to 21 on the first two days. Yorkshire took advantage, posting 400-5 and taking themselves to a position where defeat is not an option.

The declaration is expected to come overnight, but the real question is whether they have enough time to dismiss Middlesex on what has become a docile wicket. Malan is the form man and will be key to Middlesex’s chances of earning the draw.

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