[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: A gusty, overcast Sunday in the teeth of Storm Kathleen brought the early wickets Worcestershire required. The Bears added just 41 runs to their overnight total as the back half of their batting order was bulldozed in the first hour; Dan Mousley the first to go for 62 as he clipped an angled-in Joe Leach delivery to short midwicket, followed two balls later by Michael Burgess, beaten on the drive by Nathan Smith who clattered his off-stump for 7 and left it stuck like a stake in the turf five yards away. The Kiwi followed it up by pinning debutant Michael Booth LBW for 1, and was unlucky to have Oliver Hannon-Dalby dropped at slip, but Danny Briggs was safely pouched for 2 off Adam Finch, and Jason Holder wrapped things up on triple Nelson when Chris Rushworth fell to a top-edge for 3. 333 all out, the 27-run lead was better than anyone had dared hope on Saturday night, and despite Gareth Roderick being strangled down the legside for 4 early in the second innings, Worcestershire survived to lunch on 46-1.

Afternoon: When Moeen disrespectfully defected two years ago, a lot of salty Pears - myself included - joked that they'd poached the wrong Ali, without truly believing it. But after this weekend it's hard to argue against the impact and the potential of Kashif Ali, who simply took the Warwickshire bowling attack to pieces as he peppered the boundary on all sides with textbook strokes. Both he and Jake Libby made effortless half-centuries in a near-chanceless afternoon (and the latter's contribution in anchoring the partnership and occasionally offering a word of advice shouldn't be overlooked), but the accelerating Kash simply left the opener in his wake as he raced to his second century of the match; the first twin ton for a Pear since Daryl Mitchell versus Lancashire in 2018, the first against Warwickshire since Glenn Turner in 1981, and the first ever in the season's opening match. The milestone being brought up with a six off Ed Barnard was the icing on the cake, and it's a wonder that the cheers rippling up the M5 didn't cause an earthquake. The fun came to an end on a career-best 133, with the the Bears players offering sporting handshakes to the SACA graduate on his way back to the pavilion, but on a Nelson-tastic 222-2 at tea with a lead of 249, Worcestershire were back in control of the match.

Evening: Alas, there was time for Jake Libby and Rob Jones to make just 15 more runs before rain curtailed the day's play on 237-2, the lead standing at 264. Worcestershire's day all ends up from start to finish, and our greatest enemy is now the weather, which looks likely to put an end to the match at teatime on Monday. An hour's happy hitting, a declaration and a forty-over dart at the Bears top order? Sounds like a plan.