Michael Powell admitted mixed emotions after getting out on 299 against Gloucestershire at Cheltenham College, failing by an elusive single to become the county’s second triple centurion.

The only man to pass 300 for Glamorgan is Steve James, a good friend of Powell’s. And Powell admitted he was more focused on James’s 309 than getting to 300.

“I was thinking more about the record score and there are a few regrets that I did not go past him but, though I failed, I’m absolutely landed,’’ he says. “If you’d have given me 299 before the start of the match, I would have taken it.”

He added: “It appears that I am playing well but I have had a little bit of luck on the way and I have hit the ball better. The thing that is good in my game at the moment is my concentration.”

But Powell laughs off talk of an England call following his prolific form, which included another double-century in the previous Championship match against Essex. “I’m miles away, absolutely
miles away.”

The Wisden Cricketer, Richard Thomas