[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Yeah, all seemed to go tits up towards the end there, wides and misfields all over the shop. Great knock from Vilas though.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

vs Warwickshire

One-Day Cup, Northern Group

New Road, Worcester

For Worcestershire the equation is now mathematically plain: win two games from the remaining three and progression will be guaranteed.  If one of those wins comes against Durham on Sunday, then it'll be a second-place finish and a home quarter-final.  But Wednesday's emphatic defeat at Old Trafford was a timely reminder that the Pears are still underdogs punching above their weight in a tough group, and all bets are off today as they face arch-rivals and reigning champions Warwickshire, now eliminated from the competition and free of pressure, on a rainy day when Duckworth-Lewis may have the final say.  Dark clouds on the horizon in every respect.

Warks innings: Pears won the toss and put the Bears in to bat after a half-hour rain delay.  Sadly, it was deja vu all over again for the Pears as for the second time this week, they had things in hand with the opposition around 150 and a handful of wickets down, only to run up against a partnership in Ian Bell and Rikki Clarke which they couldn't break or contain, and then got knocked all around the ground in the last half-dozen overs.  104 for Bell and 84 not out for Clarke, ably helped along by a shocking thirteen wides and four no-balls, carried Warwickshire to 304-5.  So here we go again chasing a lofty total with scoreboard pressure on, and conditions for batting even worse than they were at Old Trafford.  Worcestershire their own worst enemies, and I fear this is going to take something special from our batsmen to snatch the win.

Worcs innings: The weather came to Worcestershire's aid, the rain commencing at the start of the interval and continuing until nearly four o'clock.  When things got back underway, the Pears were chasing an amended total of 241 from thirty-four overs; a target that favoured us on paper, assuming we weren't at home to Mrs F**k-Up. But of course, Worcestershire are always at home to Mrs F**k-Up, and a series of unfortunate events saw Moeen caught behind for just 7, Pepsi dismissed the same way for a slightly more respectable 24, Mitchell holing out to Sam Hain for 8 and Dolly being run out on his second ball for 1.  At that point, eight overs into the chase, the Pears were 57-4 and reeling, and it required cool heads from Joe Clarke and Ben Cox to steady the ship and build a partnership over the following ten overs. Clarke managed a half-century before going for one big hit too many, and Cox was dismissed LBW one short of his fifty, but the run-rate had accelerated and the Pears middle-order were in business.  Big John Hastings smashed two fours and three sixes on his way to a solid 36, pushing Worcestershire up above Duckworth-Lewis and leaving them needing just 45 off the last 37 deliveries; but with only three wickets remaining and the Bears cranking up the pressure with some tight death-bowling, the atmosphere around New Road was fraught with tension. We needn't have worried. Captain Joe Leach was canny enough to nick a boundary or two and bring the equation to a run a ball, and after biding his time and nudging ones and twos for a while, Ross Whiteley finally lost his patience and started smashing boundaries all over the shop, including a magnificent six to take the Pears to a hard-fought victory over their ageing and ailing neighbours.

With that win, Worcestershire reclaim second place in the group and keep their fate in their own hands. One more will see us through.

Worcestershire WIN by three wickets (D/L)

Star Performer: You can take your pick among the Pears middle-order, to be honest, with a collection of sixes which respectively rattled the windows of the Premier Inn, knocked tiles off the roof of the club offices, endangered a few windscreens in the car park and nearly caused a pile-up on New Road. But above and beyond the efforts of Messrs Hastings, Whiteley and Cox, it took some really mature and astute batting from young Joe Clarke to turn this match around at the point when it looked like the whole campaign might go up in flames. He's had a quieter year so far than his explosive season in 2016, managing a number of fairly decent scores without ever really pushing on and playing a blinder of an innings: this is his first half-century of 2017 in all formats, and it couldn't have come at a better time. Let's hope it spurs him on to even better in the two huge games to come.

Next Match: Worcestershire welcome a formidable Durham side to New Road on Sunday as the race for second place comes to a head.

[themaclad]

It's good to beat your local rivals

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

It's good to beat your local rivals

Aye, all the more so when you're (traditionally) the underdog! The Bears have really struggled to bring young players through in recent years, as evidenced by the golden oldies they've been relying on to carry them through. It's the polar opposite for the Pears, and great for our young guns to have got the win yesterday. Still reckon we're riding our luck a bit, and Durham will probably beat us tomorrow, but fingers crossed we'll make it through.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

vs Durham

One-Day Cup, Northern Group

New Road, Worcester

Drawing to the conclusion of the group campaign now, and in Worcester today we've got a match that will go a long way to defining the final standings of the group.  Durham are an imperious side who've matched Worcestershire's results in the competition so far, and are two points behind the Pears only because of their points deduction.  They need to win this in order to have their fate in their own hands going into final day.  For the Pears there's a little more leeway, but the pressure will be on if they lose.  A win, of course, will guarantee progression and a minimum second-place finish.  All to play for.

Worcs innings: Durham won the toss and put the Pears in to bat on a bright and sunny day after heavy rain overnight.  A good opening partnership between Moeen and Pepsi in the first ten overs, scoring 34 and 48 respectively, set things up nicely for Worcestershire; however, while things kept ticking over on the scoreboard with a few half-decent knocks, Durham took wickets regularly to break up the succeeding partnerships and it required a good patient innings from Dolly - easily his best of the season so far in any format - to hold things together and push the Pears up to something approaching a competitive score.  He finished on 73 not out, Worcestershire on 270-8 off the fifty, which may be roughly a par score on a slow wicket.  However, we know Durham can bat, and this isn't a total which will pile pressure on them or force them to take risks.  I suspect we'll need to skittle them if we're to defend it.

Durham innings: Well, who'd have thought it?  Knowing they needn't take any unnecessary risks chasing 270 at a little over five runs an over, Durham's chase seemed like a walk in the park as Graham Clark and Keaton Jennings racked up an opening partnership of 122 over the first twenty-four overs. Even when Jennings got a bit careless and nicked one to Tom Kohler-Cadmore off a Moeen delivery, the men from the north-east were still well on course and looking likely to win at a canter. But while Clark stayed at the crease to grab himself a ton, successive partners came and went trying desperately to accelerate the run-rate, and slowly blew it for their side in the process. Not a single batsman from the Durham middle-order made it into double figures as the Pears spinners piled on the pressure with dot-balls and regular wickets, and when Clark himself holed out to Ed Barnard with fifty-five still needed off thirty-six balls and only three wickets remaining, the game was up. There was time for Hastings and Shantry to reduce Durham to their last wicket, but time ran out for the team in third place.

Even more astonishingly, the Bears did us an immense favour at Edgbaston with a five-wicket victory over Yorkshire. The result of all this? Worcestershire now top the group and are mathematically assured of both qualification and a home tie in the next round. A win at Derby on Tuesday would allow the Pears to retain top spot irrespective of what Yorkshire do, and make it a semi-final to look forward to next. But whatever happens, this has been a brilliant campaign over the last four weeks from a young, unfancied team.

Worcestershire WIN by fifteen runs

Star Performer: Honourable mentions for both Daryl Mitchell and John Hastings, picking up three wickets apiece during that cagey run-chase. But with his best batting performance of the season so far on a sticky wicket with boundaries at a premium, and following it up with yet another effective bout of spin bowling (1-41 off his ten overs), for the second time this week it has to be Dolly who gets the nod. This time it was in a winning cause, too. Hope he can keep this form returning to the Championship next weekend.

Next Match: Bidding farewell to New Road for the coming month, we commence a tour of England at Derby on Tuesday with the title of group champions ours to lose.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Sky confirm that the Derbyshire vs Worcestershire match on Tuesday will be televised.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Weather forecast for tomorrow not looking too clever. Heavy rain expected right up until 1600, if not 1700. Supposed to clear as the evening progresses, so if the pitch is still decent then might get a reduced game.

[themaclad]

Lancs at Durham so probably snow up there ete

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

vs Derbyshire

One-Day Cup, Northern Group

The County Ground, Derby

The last time that Worcestershire made it through to a semi-final in any competition was way back in 2004, en route to a second successive Lord's defeat against Gloucestershire.  It's been a long and barren spell for the county ever since, but today the Pears have the chance to book their place in the last four of the One-Day Cup by finishing top of the group.  The weather is likely to have a say in all of today's games, but thankfully after some dire forecasts, we look set to get a game of cricket at Derby in one form or another.  Their fate's in their own hands.  Come on you Pears.

Derby innings: Pears won the toss and put Derbyshire in to bat on a humid, overcast day.  There was time for the home side to play ten overs, and for Worcestershire to dismiss Slater with a good catch in the slips, before heavy rain set in and remained for two hours.  When play restarted at 5pm we were looking at a reduced-overs game of 36 per side, and the Pears did pretty well containing Derbyshire to 209-8 off their innings with three wickets for Ed Barnard and a decent debut from Aussie spinner Nathan Lyon yielding a wicket and a catch in the deep.  The target for the Pears will be adjusted by Duckworth-Lewis to 218, which on paper doesn't look a huge ask (especially since they chased down 241 off thirty-four with two overs to spare on Friday), but if Derbyshire take quick wickets then it might prove defendable.  Not sure Leicestershire are going to do us any favours at Headingley, so it's all on us.

Worcs innings: An utterly destructive start from Pepsi who greeted his first ball, after watching five swinging, seaming deliveries from the non-striker's end, by smashing a six over long-on without batting an eyelid. It was a statement of intent and a taste of things to come as the young man notched up 63 from just thirty-four balls, including eight fours and three sixes, before feathering one behind to Smit. That crucial foundation allowed the Pears to cruise through the remainder of the innings, with Daryl Mitchell nudging and nurdling his way to 67 before offering up a cheap caught-and-bowled to Viljoen. There were a few silly and unnecessary dismissals among the top and middle orders as the Pears slowed down and Derbyshire put a little pressure on, but the equation remained under a run a ball, and it required only a couple of calm heads in Ed Barnard and Ross Whiteley to cross the line, the latter biffing one down the ground and over the rope in typical fashion to finish things when just six were needed. Yorkshire won at Headingley, but it didn't matter; with six wins and a tie from their eight group games, Worcestershire have gone from underdogs to top dogs. A home semi-final now awaits for the first time in thirteen years, and the road to Lord's is wide open ahead of this confident young side.

Worcestershire WIN by five wickets (D/L)

Worcestershire are CHAMPIONS of the Northern Group

Star Performer: A handy debut from Nathan Lyon, even though he seemed a bit at sea in these conditions (pun intended); also credit to Daryl Mitchell for top-scoring in the Pears innings, and Ed Barnard for a useful three-fer. But you have to wonder how much tougher this chase would have proved if it weren't for Tom Kohler-Cadmore. The young white-ball opener has his share of Jekyll and Hyde performances, but for the most part in this competition Pepsi has been a potent weapon at the crease for Worcestershire, and today he showed precisely why.

Next Match: It's back to the business of the County Championship on Friday, as the Pears look to extend their first-class winning streak with a real change of scenery... against Derbyshire, in Derby.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

vs Derbyshire

County Championship, Division Two

The County Ground, Derby

Day One: Heavy overnight rain rendered the outfield unplayable, costing two full sessions of play.  Things finally got going at 4pm with the Pears putting Derby in to bat, and it was a dream start with Joe Leach bowling Slater off the final ball of the first over.  In good conditions for the seamers, Worcestershire would have hoped to push on from there and take four or five before close of play, but the Derbyshire batsmen played well to see off the new ball and settle themselves at the crease.  It took an hour and more before Thakor was caught at second slip by Daryl Mitchell off a Jack Shantry delivery, and though Madsen followed shortly thereafter, caught behind off a ball from young Josh Tongue, Luis Reece worked his way to a half-century and Billy Godleman remains not out on 13.  Derbyshire 111-3 at close of play, and likely to be marginally the happier of the two sides.  If the forecast for tomorrow is to be believed, we're looking at an hour of fine weather followed by heavy showers all afternoon.  If the Pears can dismiss Reece and Godleman before the rain hits then we might well have a good day of it.

Day Two: The Pears did indeed dismiss Reece and Godleman before the rain hit, but when the heavens opened, they meant business.  Play came only in fits and starts through the early afternoon, though there was sufficient time for Hughes to make a half-century and Nathan Lyon to take his maiden first-class wicket for Worcestershire, but the weather was the ultimate winner.  With the outfield waterlogged again, close of play came at 5pm with Derbyshire 200-6.  The forecast for Sunday and Monday is precipitation-free; so, two days of adventurous cricket to try and force a result, or a slow trundle towards the inevitable draw?  We'll see tomorrow.

Day Three: A fine day in every respect, with the rain finally gone and Worcestershire very much in business.  Derbyshire were bowled out for 275 (perhaps a larger total than the Pears would have hoped having been 200-6 overnight), but the day belonged to Mitchell and Dolly whose opening partnership of 243, including a century apiece, put the Pears very much in the driving seat.  A few wickets tumbled in the last hour, including both openers, but with Worcestershire 323-3 and leading by 48 runs, it's been an excellent day's work.  Worcestershire's biggest opponent now is time: a draw is by far the most likely result, but if the Pears can pile on runs by the dozens tomorrow morning and then have a go at bowling Derbyshire out in the last two sessions, a big win might still be there for the taking.

Day Four: Magnificent stuff. The Pears batsmen added 92 more runs off seventeen overs on Monday morning, with Pepsi supplying 42 of them, before taking the bold move of declaring a little after midday on 415-9, setting Derbyshire a first-innings lead of just 140. It proved an inspired stroke by captain Joe Leach as the home side proceeded to collapse. The first six overs saw them lose four wickets for just 18 runs, and though the middle-order shored things up as best they could before lunch, the match was gone. Leach himself took five-fer over the course of the day, taking his total haul in the Championship this season to twenty-two in just three matches, before allowing Josh Tongue and Nathan Lyon to bring the match to a close with hours to spare. Derbyshire all out for 98 in less than thirty overs, and Worcestershire pull off a stunning innings victory that looked nigh on impossible after losing the best part of two days to rain. A full 24 points gained, a fifth successive Championship win stretching back to last season, and the county's best start to a season since winning three from three in 1988.

Worcestershire WIN by an innings and forty-two runs

Star Performer: That first-wicket stand between Mitch and Dolly that lasted most of Sunday and gifted them a century each was certainly key to this win.  But with nine wickets in the match and an inspired declaration, the architect of Derbyshire's defeat has to be Joe Leach. The new captain is going from strength to strength, and taking his team with him.

Next Match: Worcestershire look to extend the Championship winning streak to six with a visit to Northants next weekend.