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T20 Blast, Northern Group

vs Durham

New Road, Worcester

Durham innings: Worcestershire won the toss and put Durham in to bat on a muggy and overcast August evening. After the departures of Guptill and Head, there was a welcome return for Callum Ferguson and a debut for Wayne Parnell in an unusually deep batting order for the Pears. However, it was the bowling attack to the fore in the afternoon heat, and it didn't cover itself in glory. The early wicket of Graham Clark to a short ball from Pat Brown and that of Liam Trevaskis to Parnell provided early hope, but Durham maintained a steady ten-an-over rate until the death when a quick clatter of wickets kept them to 194-7; a smaller total than it might have been, but still a formidable showing from a team on a five-match winning streak.

Worcs innings: For a full sixteen overs, it looked as though the Pears weren't interested in doing anything but pissing this away. Joe Clarke was caught behind for just 5, while Moeen and Dolly followed in quick succession to leave the home side 69-3. Ben Cox played his usual neat run-a-ball cameo for 16 before being caught behind off a half-arsed reverse sweep, and Callum Ferguson picked up exactly where he left off with a handy 39, only to hole out to a slog with more height than length on it. Those regular wickets left Worcestershire 122-5, needing 73 more runs from just 33 balls with only the lower-middle order and the tail remaining. There was, of course, nothing else for it but for Ross Whiteley to do a Ross Whiteley. With a dazzling parcel of boundaries, including four fours off one over by Nathan Rimmington, the pinch hitter steered the Pears to needing 37 off the last three overs. Ed Barnard got in on the act with a crucial six down the ground before ramping one straight into the hands of third man. 166-6: 29 needed off 13 balls, and a maximum over long-off from Whiteley off the very next delivery brought that equation down while also completing his half-century. The big man slogged a couple more big ones to whittle it down to 10 needed off the final over, only to perish by holing out at long-on off the first of those last six balls. Up stepped Wayne Parnell to find the boundary with a classical cover drive, bringing it down to 6 off 4. The South African supplied another two off the next ball, and with 4 now needed from 3 deliveries, it all ended with a brisk clip off the pads to the square leg boundary.

Worcestershire WIN by three wickets

The Verdict: A vital win in the context of the competition, propelling Worcestershire from 4th place back up into 1st and giving us some vital breathing space from the chasing pack. Irrespective of what happens in the coming fortnight, this is already Worcestershire's best T20 campaign since 2015, but a win at Trent Bridge tomorrow would give us one foot in the quarter-finals.