[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: In the first over of a muggy, humid day, Ed Barnard had Fynn Hudson-Prentice caught behind for 4 to lift Worcestershire's spirits after a tough second day. When Joe Leach followed that up by dismissing Anoj Dal LBW for a duck to leave Derbyshire 277-8, there were fresh hopes that the innings might be wrapped up quickly with an achievable target. However, a ninth-wicket partnership of 99 steadily took the game away, and by the time things came to a close with Leach getting Palladino to loft up a catch to mid-on for 58 and Barnard returning his best figures of the season by dismissing Ravi Rampaul for a duck, the Peakites had set the Pears a daunting 373 to win.

Afternoon: You can never overstate the ability of the Worcestershire top order to make a pitch which has been placid as a lake for a day and a half look like an absolute chuffing minefield. The Pears were blown away in an afternoon onslaught that saw them reduced to 48-5 before Callum Ferguson and Ben Cox dug in and led a fightback, reaching tea on 65-5.

Evening: The partnership continued without a single wicket lost for the remainder of the day, and the home side reached stumps on 156-5, still needing a frankly impossible 217 to win.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

T20 Blast, North Group

vs Nottinghamshire

Trent Bridge, Nottingham

Worcs innings: The Pears won the toss and elected to bat on a used pitch, bathed by Thursday evening sunshine on a fine July night. Batting was clearly a tricky proposition from the word go, and Riki Wessels did well to get a couple of boundaries from the first over against his former club, then raced to 24 off 31 balls before skying a Harry Gurney delivery to short fine leg. Callum Ferguson followed him back to the pavilion shortly after when he was bowled off an inside-edge for 5 off the last ball of the powerplay, but Martin Guptill and Moeen Ali - both making their first appearance of the season in Worcestershire colours - kept the scoreboard ticking over, and the Pears would have been very happy with their 78-2 at the halfway mark. However, when Guptill was caught and bowled off a low full-toss for 27, it opened the door for the home side, and within a few overs the visitors had collapsed to 102-6. With the innings teetering, it required Ben Cox to steady the ship, and Ed Barnard to play his career-best T20 knock, knocking sixes down the ground and ramping the ball to the boundary with ease, dragging Worcs up to a very handy total of 161-6 off the twenty.

Notts innings: The wicket that every Pears fan wanted was the first to fall, as Joe Clarke drilled a wide ball from Dillon Pennington straight to cover for 5. The following over, Ben Duckett perished in precisely the same way for 2, giving Pat Brown his first scalp of this year's competition, and leaving Notts 16-2. However, in a cagey run-chase the hosts managed to consolidate from there, and Worcs did their best to keep the brakes on as Alex Hales proved an inevitable threat. But after completing his half-century, Hales was comprehensively bowled by Ed Barnard for 52, and the young all-rounder continued to turn in his best performance of the season in any format as the run-rate climbed and the wickets kept tumbling. It was a foregone conclusion by the last few overs, and Worcestershire couldn't have hoped for a better start to their defence of the T20 title.

Worcestershire WIN by twenty-eight runs

The Verdict: In the middle of what's rapidly becoming a miserable season, the T20 Blast is a small ray of hope for the Pears, and we're off to a flyer. Dillon Pennington looks a bit rusty, but great to see Pat Brown back in the thick of it, with no signs yet that batsmen are sussing his tricks out. Here's hoping for another memorable campaign.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

T20 Blast, Quarter-Final

vs Sussex

The County Ground, Hove

Sussex innings: The Pears won the toss and put Sussex in to bat on a sunny if bitterly cold autumn evening.  Fielding a weakened team for this rematch of last year's final, Worcestershire were very much the underdogs from the word go, and that fact was emphasised by openers Luke Wright and Phil Salt dishing out some serious humpty during the powerplay, each surviving a half-chance to take the hosts to 55-0.  Just when it seemed like Worcs were running out of ideas, Daryl Mitchell managed to tempt both batsmen into one big shot too many in consecutive overs, removing Wright for 28 and Salt for 72.  With the door open, Ed Barnard obligingly deceived Alex Carey with a slower ball that the Aussie wicketkeeper skyed for a simple catch, then clattered David Wiese's stumps off the very next ball with a searing, inswinging yorker.  It was Moeen Ali who accounted for Delray Rawlins, holding onto a steepling caught-and-bowled chance, and Charlie Morris who took Chris Jordan by surprise with a bouncer that he feathered through to the keeper.  However, through this collapse Laurie Evans remained at the crease and kept the scoreboard ticking, and in the end he almost single-handedly dragged Sussex up to a competitive 184-6; a total that hadn't been successfully chased down in T20 at Hove since 2010.

Worcs innings: In the first couple of overs it didn't look remotely like the Pears were in danger of threatening that decade-long record, with Joe Leach comprehensively bowled by Reece Topley off the third ball of the innings.  That brought Moeen to the crease, and for a few deliveries he looked anything but fluent or confident, struggling to find the middle of the bat and shortly lofting an uppercut straight into the gloves of Alex Carey behind the stumps.  However, in a turning point that will live long in Carey's nightmares, he shelled the chance, and the reprieved Moeen - at that point on 5 - proceeded to marmalise the Sussex attack for the remainder of the game.  No less than eleven sixes - equalling the club's T20 record set by Ross Whiteley at Headingley in 2015 - came off the skipper's bat as he raced to a fifty-ball ton, while Riki Wessels played a valuable anchor role at the other end.  Their partnership became the biggest for the second wicket in Worcs T20 history, surpassing the 149 scored by Graeme Hick and Ben Smith against Glamorgan in 2005, and then the best for any wicket when it went beyond the 175 of Hick and Solanki against Northants at Chester Road in 2007.  Of course, all good things come to an end, and Wessels did eventually perish as he tried to end the game quickly with a big hit, but Mo remained unbowed and unbeaten (having been dropped twice by Reece Topley), and he fittingly polished off the chase with another towering six to take the Pears to their second Finals Day in as many years.

Worcestershire WIN by eight wickets

The Verdict: You wait fifteen years for a Finals Day, and then two come along at once.  A magnificent achievement by an understrength Worcestershire side who've had a miserable Championship season, and a small ray of hope that we may yet compensate for that red-ball disappointment by successfully defending the T20 title.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

County Championship, Division Two

vs Glamorgan

Day One

Morning: Glamorgan put the Pears straight in to bat on a misty Tuesday morning at New Road, hosting its first Championship match for months after the break for the T20 Blast and the chaos of June's floods. Hamish Rutherford was the first casualty of the day, bowled by Michael Hogan for a brisk 19 on his home Championship debut, and he was followed back by Moeen Ali, who made an equally rapid 18 before a careless drive saw him edge Timm van der Gugten low to third slip. However, a watchful Daryl Mitchell, making his two hundredth first-class appearance for the county, nudged his way to 31 as Worcs reached lunch on 74-2.

Afternoon: Sadly, the veteran only added 5 to his tally after the interval before being caught behind for 36, and in an all-too-common sight this season, that precipitated a collapse for the hosts. Alex Milton was the next to be caught behind for 12, and the Championship debut of Jack Haynes faltered when the eighteen-year-old was dismissed LBW for 17 offering no shot to a ball that nipped back from van der Gugten. The same bowler and mode of dismissal did for Ben Cox on 7, and though Riki Wessels counter-attacked with an impressive 45 off 35 balls, balancing streaky boundaries with fierce cover drives, he too fell by driving Rory Smith straight to mid-off. Smith also claimed the sixth and final wicket of the afternoon by pinning Joe Leach LBW for 7, and the Pears duly closed the session on 186-8, once again facing the prospect of making not a single batting point.

Evening: With a bit of patience and luck, the hosts guided themselves to within a single run of that elusive batting point before Charlie Morris was bowled by Hogan for 9, and newcomer Adam Finch finished the job in style by driving his very first ball for four. However, he added only one more run to his tally before being pouched at first slip off Hogan, leaving Worcestershire 205 all out. Still, that perilously low total was put into a bit of perspective before stumps when Morris had Nick Selman caught at second slip for 6, and Ed Barnard followed up by having Tom Cullen caught behind for 10. Glamorgan closed on 44-2 to just about shade the day's play, but with plenty still to do.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Two

Morning: A warm and pleasant September day, and Chris Morris struck early in consecutive overs to have Kraigg Brathwaite caught behind for 19 and Billy Root caught at point for 8. From there the momentum stayed with the Pears, as Adam Finch had Samit Patel caught at fine leg for 5, Moeen took a return catch from David Lloyd for 35 and Joe Leach rounded off a five-wicket morning by having Chris Cooke caught low at first slip, reducing Glamorgan to 120-7 at lunch.

Afternoon: A sizeable first-innings lead looked on the cards when Morris bowled Ruaidhri Smith for 18, but the tail wagged a little for the visitors before Moeen had Lukas Carey caught at cover for 16 and Morris completed his third five-fer of the season with Michael Hogan holing out to deep fine leg for 15, leaving Glamorgan 193 all out and giving the Pears a slender lead of 12. That lead was quickly and confidently extended by the Worcs openers, who attacked the Glamorgan bowlers for fifteen overs until Hamish Rutherford was caught at second slip for a superb run-a-ball 52, and at tea the hosts went in on 86-1 with a satisfying lead of 98.

Evening: The Pears continued to go strong with Mitch making a patient and sensible half-century, and though Moeen perished when he skipped down the pitch to Samit Patel and aimed an ill-advised heave towards deep midwicket, only to hole out to mid-off with a leading edge for 26, young Jack Haynes came to the crease and ably steadied the ship. Though the run-rate dipped along with the sinking sun, Worcestershire reached close of play without further loss, and were 153-2 overnight with every hope of pushing on to set a match-winning total on Thursday.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: A grey beginning to the day gave Glamorgan a chance to get back into the game, and their first breakthrough came when Jack Haynes fell LBW for 31 while trying to sweep Samit Patel, who then doubled his tally for the session with a ball that leapt up on Alex Milton, causing him to nick behind for 5. As he did in the first innings, Riki Wessels attacked the bowlers confidently and piled on a quickfire 32 before being dismissed LBW by Michael Hogan, who subsequently had Ben Cox caught behind for a duck. But while the wickets toppled at the other end, Daryl Mitchell calmly went about the business of marking his 200th Worcs appearance with his 37th first-class century, shepherding the hosts to lunch on 262-6 with a lead of 274.

Afternoon: With wickets being claimed in twos all day, it was Timm van der Gugten's turn to double up after the interval, dismissing Ed Barnard caught and bowled for 6 and then Joe Leach for 4, clipping to midwicket. Charlie Morris was bowled for 1 by Samit Patel as the Worcestershire tail folded, but by the time Mitch was run out, his 139 had carried the Pears up to a total of 299, setting Glamorgan a target of 312 to win. And if there were any lingering nerves about our ability to defend that score, they were allayed within the first five balls of the run-chase as Leach had Nick Selman caught at second slip, and then Kraigg Brathwaite was run out without facing a delivery by a direct hit from Barnard at cover. Leach struck again to bowl Nick Cullen for 5 shortly after, and with the visitors already in all kinds of trouble, Barnard completed a magnificent session by bowling the threatening David Lloyd around his legs for 29, and pinning Samit Patel plumb LBW for 7. On 69-5 at tea, the result was all but a foregone conclusion.

Evening: Charlie Morris ended the slim middle-order resistance with two wickets in an over, as Billy Root was caught at point for 26 and Ruadhri Smith dismissed LBW for 4, at which point the Welsh side cut loose and started swinging for the hell of it. After a few big boundaries, Adam Finch struck with the first ball of his spell to coax a top-edge from van der Gugten on the pull, safely pouched at midwicket, and it was down to Moeen to polish things off, bowling the stubborn Chris Cooke for 45 when he attempted a drive, and tempting Lukas Carey into holing out to the midwicket boundary for 12. After a four-month wait, it was a sound and convincing win for Worcs at last, and you can only wonder what might have been if we'd delivered this kind of performance all season.

Worcestershire WIN by a hundred and fifty-five runs

The Verdict: At last; at long last. It's been a miserable summer of Championship cricket for the Pears, and this victory is too little and too late to change a promotion bid which failed a couple of months ago, but the team are starting to get the basics right again, and now is the perfect time to put a bit of momentum together that can hopefully be carried into 2020.

[themaclad]

Joe Clarke apparently leaving Notts

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Joe Clarke apparently leaving Notts

Where have you heard that? Can't find anything about it online.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

County Championship, Division Two

vs Gloucestershire

Day One

Morning: Gloucestershire put the Pears straight in to bat on a real September morning at New Road; cold, grey and drizzly, with play delayed for a full hour. When things got underway at last, survival was the priority, but tough conditions caused top-order wickets to tumble in quick succession, and the hosts were fortunate to reach lunch on 63-4.

Afternoon: The hole deepened as Ben Cox was caught at third slip for 2 shortly after the interval, and that wicket was the cue for a much-needed counter-attack from Riki Wessels and Ed Barnard, who managed between them to more than double the county's score before the latter was caught behind for 30. Wessels completed an excellent half-century, and looked all set to convert until he holed out to deep square leg for 72, leaving the Pears 187-7. Nevertheless, the lower order came out swinging, with Joe Leach making a rapid 26 as Worcestershire were 221 all out on the stroke of tea.

Evening: For a while it looked as though the visitors might make batting look embarrassingly easy for the remainder of the day, but conditions were still good for bowling, and with the ball nipping about Ed Barnard soon had James Bracey caught behind for 23, followed by Chris Dent caught at third slip for 18. At the other end, after building pressure with a series of maidens, Daryl Mitchell got in on the act with his first Championship wicket of the season when he dismissed Tom Smith LBW for 9. Miles Hammond was the next to go, another casualty of Barnard caught behind for 5; however, just when it seemed like a collapse might be imminent, Ben Charlesworth and Gareth Roderick managed to steer Gloucs safely to close on 87-4, ending a fairly even day's play. With the forecast for Tuesday considerably more batting-friendly, it's going to be vital that the Pears use whatever moisture and movement there is before noon to snaffle a couple of scalps early doors, then attack the tail as soon as possible.

[themaclad]

Rumours of Hameed to Worcester