[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

One-Day Cup, Group A

vs Essex

County Ground, Chelmsford

Worcs innings: Essex won the toss and put an unchanged Pears side in to bat on a used pitch under cloudy Thursday afternoon skies. Whatever the plan was for the hosts, it came off the rails very quickly. Though understandably wary of the batting collapses that marred the first two matches, Brett D'Oliveira and Jack Haynes still scored at a comfortable six an over through the powerplay, and after sixteen overs, approaching an unbroken stand of a hundred, Dolly brought up his half-century by skipping down the track and pulling Simon Harmer over square leg for six. It set the tone for what was to come; Haynes completed yet another fifty of his own and began to steadily accelerate above a run a ball, intent on making the real milestone with a fine series of risk-free back-foot shots on the off-side. Dolly was first to hit the hundred, tucking Tom Westley into the leg-side and notching his first List A century at the fifty-eighth attempt, but his joy was nothing to that of Haynes when he finally struck his maiden professional ton in any format, stroking Aron Nijjar to long-off for a single in the teatime sunshine, leaping and punching the air even as he trotted down the pitch, with his partner mirroring the glee at the other end. After a punch of gloves and a hearty embrace normal service resumed, at least until Dolly holed out for 123 off Shane Snater; that prompted the somewhat inevitable fall of dominoes, with pinch-hitter Joe Leach LBW for 1 to Nijjar, Tom Fell caught for 2, Jake Libby run out for 3, and Ed Barnard caught behind for 3 trying a reverse sweep. Through it all, Jack Haynes just continued to steal the show, thumping sixes down the ground en route to another half-century before he was finally stumped by Adam Wheater for a superlative 153, leaving the Pears 300-6 with four overs remaining. Ten an over would have been the hope from there, but Gareth Roderick could only offer his now-standard single figure score with 7, and it was thus down to the two Joshes - Dell and Baker - to lift the Pears up to 338-7 off the fifty; the former with 27 above a run a ball, including three fours, and the latter with a useful six to round off a very decent knock.

Essex innings: The winning momentum just grew and grew as Charlie Morris kicked off the reply by sending down three consecutive dot balls, then yorked Will Buttleman with the fourth and clattered off-stump for a duck. Three overs later, Joe Leach got a length ball to nip back to Tom Westley after the Essex man had made a bright start, clean bowling him for 14 and leaving the home side 15-2. It got worse still for them; in his very next over, Leach coaxed some extra bounce from the pitch and had Michael Pepper caught behind for a duck, and two balls later, Ryan ten Doeschate also copped a shiny egg when another nip-backer struck the Dutchman plumb in front. From 17-4 a major rebuild took place, and with Sir Alastair Cook leading by example, Essex struggled into the eighties off the first twenty overs. But even a knight of the realm was no match for a slow ball from Ed Barnard, and Cook was caught at mid-off for 42; then the incoming Simon Harmer swiftly became the outgoing Simon Harmer when he edged the very next ball behind for a golden duck. There was no hat-trick for Barnard, but at 87-6, still trailing by 251 runs, the remainder of the match was all but a formality. Josh Baker chipped in and got a deserved scalp when Nijjar holed out for 2 to deep midwicket, and having performed so well with the bat, it was only fitting for Dolly to supply the final three wickets, dismissing Essex for a miserable 156 and duly wrapping up a thumping win on the road.

Worcestershire WIN by one hundred and eighty-two runs

The Verdict: While there may have been doubts hanging over the first couple of performances, this was a real drubbing of an Essex side with their fair share of white-ball talent, and a close to flawless performance from Worcestershire. The new county record List A opening partnership from Haynes and D'Oliveira was undoubtedly the platform for victory, and Haynes in particular is increasingly looking like the real deal. But it was also a disciplined showing with the ball and in the field, and the only slight negative overall was the clatter of wickets that followed Dolly's departure, though perhaps an understandable side-effect of going on the attack to capitalise on the gigantic opening stand. The win puts Worcestershire at the top of the group, with Lancashire the only other team unbeaten, and bottom side Middlesex up next.