[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

County Championship, Division One

vs Surrey

Day One

Morning: A contested toss was won by Surrey, who unsurprisingly elected to bat in fine conditions. Despite beating the bat a few times in the first hour, Worcestershire failed to make a breakthrough until Mark Stoneman was run out for 28.

Afternoon: A couple more Surrey wickets fell as first Borthwick and then Patel were caught behind off the bowling of Joe Leach, but otherwise the fun in the sun continued for the home side, with the visitors aiming simply to remain economical with their bowling.

Evening: Only one further wicket fell, with Foakes caught behind off the bowling of Ed Barnard, as Rory Burns made his first century of the season while carrying his bat through the day. 278-4 overnight.

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Day Two

Morning: A beautiful May day, and with a good deal of patience the Pears bowlers finally got their reward. Joe Leach led the way again, regaining a little of last summer's form as he dismissed both Ollie Pope and Sam Curran in successive overs. Charlie Morris, who made his long-awaited return last weekend, was the one to dismiss Clarke and Rory Burns seven short of his double-century.

Afternoon: Worcestershire mopped up the Surrey tail with debutant Ben Twohig grabbing his maiden first-class wicket; the home side were 434 all out, undoubtedly a competitive total but less than it could have been. On a good batting surface, Worcs began their reply well, and went into tea without loss.

Evening: The unlucky Dolly went LBW to Rikki Clarke early in the session, making a decent 23, but the rest of the day belonged to Tom Fell and the imperious Daryl Mitchell, who shrugged off the top-order travails of recent weeks to see the visitors through to stumps on 135-1, trailing by 299. More of the same tomorrow, see ourselves safely past the follow-on, and there should at last be a stop to the rot for Worcestershire in 2018.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: The hottest May bank holiday on record saw the Pears also enjoy their best day back in Division One so far. It got off to a somewhat inauspicious start as Daryl Mitchell was trapped on the crease by a ball from Rikki Clarke and dismissed plumb LBW for 81, but for the remainder of the session Tom Fell and Joe Clarke were able to make the Surrey bowlers toil in the sun.

Afternoon: The fruitful third-wicket partnership came to an end as Tom Fell, playing his best innings since September 2015 and looking good for a century, played an uppish drive straight to Stuart Meaker at mid-off from the bowling of Sam Curran; a soft dismissal for a very useful but ultimately frustrating 88. Towards the end of the session, the visitors found themselves in a bit of a race to gain the last batting point, which led to a somewhat careless two wickets in two balls before the 350 came up in time for tea.

Evening: Having played a blinder of an innings, Joe Clarke scored his maiden Division One ton a little after tea, showing for the first time in 2018 exactly why he's such a highly-rated prospect. He made it to an effortless 157 before Conor McKerr finally got a ball to nip back him to him, trapping him LBW. Ed Barnard and debutant Ben Twohig remain at the crease as Worcestershire closed on 469-6, leading by 35 runs; a very impressive total after the trials and tribulations of recent weeks. It would take an unprecedented collapse from one side or the other for this game to end in anything but a draw tomorrow, but that's a result Worcestershire will be perfectly happy with after a performance they can be overjoyed about.

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Day Four

Morning: On a scorching hot Bank Holiday Monday, Surrey's nineteen-year-old off-spinner Amar Virdi wasted no time in going to work on the Pears tail, mopping up the last four wickets for just 57 runs to dismiss Worcestershire for 526 - the county's highest-ever total at The Oval - as Ed Barnard again excelled with a well-made 66.

Afternoon: Both Surrey openers went early in the session; Mark Stoneman (who had a match to forget) falling LBW to Charlie Morris, while the previously impressive Rory Burns provided a second first-class wicket for debutant Ben Twohig by sweeping to deep square leg where Ed Barnard took a magnificent catch. But there were no real demons in the pitch, and the removal of Ryan Patel by Morris in the last over before tea was the final wicket to fall.

Match DRAWN

The Verdict: After April's dreadful baptism of fire, this match - arguably the first of the true summer - has provided Worcestershire with a little hope that it might not all be one-way traffic in 2018. It was a typical Oval pitch in the best possible conditions, but nevertheless, the Pears recorded their best innings total since scoring 569 against Derbyshire at New Road in May 2010, and were disciplined enough with the ball to keep Surrey on a leash while grabbing wickets at crucial moments. Left-arm orthodox spinner Ben Twohig may have been outshone by Surrey's Amar Virdi, but his debut was encouraging nevertheless, and with the likes of Tom Fell and Joe Clarke getting some confidence and form back, there's plenty to build on for the team as a whole next weekend against Essex.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

County Championship, Division One

vs Essex

Day One

Morning: To the surprise of everyone, given the distinctly unfriendly conditions and the loss of opener Nick Browne to a broken finger in the nets yesterday, Essex contested the toss and elected to bat upon winning. After the early loss of Varun Chopra - caught at gully off the bowling of Steve Magoffin - there seemed a little method to the madness of the visitors, as they played doggedly against disciplined Pears bowling to grind their way to 59-1. However, when Tom Westley was bowled by Ed Barnard a little before lunch, the session was balanced up. Honours were even at the break with Essex going in 64-2.

Afternoon: The chickens came home to roost for the champions straight after lunch, as the first over saw Alastair Cook dropped at first slip only to promptly edge the very next ball to the same spot from a classic Joe Leach outswinger. That opened the door for young Josh Tongue to enjoy his best session in Division One so far; consistently getting the ball to jump up off a length, the paceman removed Dan Lawrence for a quickfire 20, then Ryan ten Doeschate for 1 and Ravi Bopara for 7 in the space of just fifteen balls as Essex collapsed from 68-3 to 101-6. It went from bad to worse for the visitors as Ed Barnard got in on the act, claiming Foster and Harmer before Leach and Tongue struck again to mop up the tail. Eight wickets in total fell in the session, leaving Essex 177 all out; the third innings in a row in which they've failed to make 200.

Evening: Caution was the watchword for Daryl Mitchell and Brett D'Oliveira as the Pears openers guided the hosts through a tricky and gloomy closing session with the new ball. Where Mitch threw up the defences to eke out an unbeaten 7, Dolly showed a little more flair and attacking intent to reach his best score of the season so far, and after a bit of bad-light hokey-cokey forcing a couple of extra overs at the end of the day in which the latter was dropped at gully, the home side finally reached 47 without loss at stumps. Without doubt the best day of the season so far for Worcestershire, building on last weekend's positive showing at the Oval. With rain forecast overnight, the key now is for the openers to see out the first half-hour in the morning and let the pitch dry. This has the mark of a match where wickets will come in groups, and it was around this point where the wheels came off for Essex; with a bit of patience, Worcs can press home a serious advantage tomorrow.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Two

Morning: Another cloudy and muggy day, and the Pears struggled to consolidate from the off. Dolly was the first to go, adding only three runs to his overnight score, and Tom Fell followed him after making just 5 off four balls. A third-wicket stand of 88 between Daryl Mitchell and Joe Clarke thankfully guided Worcestershire to within a few dozen runs of parity before the former was trapped LBW by Bopara a little before lunch.

Afternoon: When he gets going, there's just no stopping Joe Clarke. The youngster effectively played a lone hand in giving Worcestershire a first-innings lead as wickets tumbled for single-figure scores all around him. On a difficult pitch, his second century in successive weekends was a sublime achievement, and one can only wonder whether it's enough to sway the England selectors in the weeks to come. By tea, Worcs were all out for 238, with what seemed a very handy lead of 61.

Evening: But sadly, after the break the Pears were obliged to watch that lead evaporate. Varun Chopra was the only man to fall before the visitors reached parity, and Alastair Cook proved a particular thorn in Worcestershire's side with an effortless half-century. In the end, Joe Leach got a ball to nip back in on the former England skipper which just grazed the bail as Cook shouldered arms, and the crucial breakthrough was made. Tom Westley fell shortly thereafter, and after a somewhat fruitless spell late in the day Josh Tongue also managed to have Ravi Bopara caught behind in the dying overs. Essex close on 143-4 with a lead of 82 on a day when honours are probably about even. With sun forecast tomorrow, Worcs need to make quick inroads in the morning and look to have the visitors all out with a lead of less than 200. Our batting order is too vulnerable to chase much more, even if the pitch improves, and we desperately need this win.

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Day Three

Morning: On a warm Sunday, the early inroads that were needed just didn't come, as Worcestershire paid dearly in runs for every wicket taken. Dan Lawrence in particular was able to make 71 before his dismissal, while Foster and Harmer put on nearly half a century between them. Josh Tongue proved the most effective threat for the home side, taking five-fer.

Afternoon: At length, Essex were all out for 275, setting the Pears a total of 215 to win. Immediately, the new ball went right against the Worcestershire top order in a way it didn't against Essex, and before long the home side were 68-4 and staring defeat in the face.

Evening: With the game almost gone, a strong sixth-wicket partnership between Travis Head and Ed Barnard steadily swung the pendulum in Worcestershire's favour until the Pears were within 55 runs of victory with five wickets still standing. Unfortunately, some tight Essex bowling caused the runs to dry up, and with more than a hint of desperation, batsmen starting hitting out in an effort to get over the line. The tail went for just 22 runs, condemning Worcestershire to yet another defeat they could ill-afford.

Worcestershire LOSE by thirty-two runs

The Verdict: Pretty heartbreaking stuff for the Pears, who - with over a month now till their next Championship match - have plenty of time to ponder how they slid from a first-innings lead of sixty-one runs to a defeat of thirty-two. Some of it may be down to spells of lax bowling, some of it to fragility at the crease, some of it to pure bad luck, of which there's no shortage around New Road right now. One can question whether Travis Head might have shown a bit more attacking intent in the second innings when Worcs started to lose momentum, but if he'd done that and got himself out then the finger would be pointed at him all the more. The frustrating ifs, buts and maybes of a narrow defeat are writ large over this result.

There's nothing the Pears can do but focus on the One-Day Cup as a way to get some wins and confidence under the belt, then go again in June.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

One-Day Cup, Northern Group

vs Derbyshire

New Road, Worcester

Worcs innings: The Pears won the toss and elected to bat on a glorious May morning at New Road, eleven months on from the disappointing conclusion of last year's brilliant One-Day Cup run. It seemed at first that Worcestershire were picking up where they left off against Surrey last June, losing openers Daryl Mitchell and Joe Clarke (who retains the spot he gained in the 2017 T20 Blast) within the first seven overs. At 28-2 it was hardly an inspiring start, but the third and fourth wicket partnerships proved fruitful, with Tom Fell grabbing a welcome half-century before being caught behind off the bowling of Luis Reece. Around the thirty-over mark the home side were 150-4, and the departure of Dolly for a well-made 46 eight overs later brought Ross Whiteley to the crease for his first Pears appearance since last August. The former Derbyshire power-hitter wasted no time going into full-on Carnage Mode, and in the space of the last twelve overs Worcestershire piled on nearly 140 runs, with some 70-odd coming off the last five. Though Whiteley finally holed out for a fearsome 58 off thirty-nine balls, his partner Ben Cox was able to complete an unbeaten half-century at a little over a run a ball, while an eight-ball cameo from Ed Barnard piled on a further 23, pushing the Pears up to 323-6; their second-biggest total of all time at New Road in fifty-over cricket, after last year's 342 against Yorkshire.

Derby innings: After a terrific performance with the bat at Edgbaston in the week, Derbyshire started brightly, finding the boundary quite easily despite the early loss of Ben Slater, caught and bowled down low by Joe Leach. Billy Godleman departed ten overs later, leaving the visitors 66-2 but keeping up with the run-rate, and the subsequent third-wicket partnership proved a real headache for the Pears. With Derbyshire cruising nicely towards the total and plenty batting to come, it was Ed Barnard who made the crucial breakthrough, removing Luis Reece with a full, straight delivery that smashed into middle and off as Reece mistimed a sweep. After Matt Critchley bizarrely elected to leave his bat dangling in the air to a Josh Tongue bouncer, gifting a simple catch behind, the big wicket of Wayne Madsen fell for 87 as the veteran played a reverse-sweep straight to short third man, and the task became insurmountable for the visitors. The tail offered little resistance, with Smit, Viljoen and Sharif being dismissed within the space of six balls, and though Alex Hughes grabbed a few boundaries and a couple of sixes at the end to narrow the margin of defeat a little, this proved a fairly comfortable return to List A cricket for the Pears.

Worcestershire WIN by fifty runs

The Verdict: At last, a victory for Worcestershire in 2018, and though the group-topping exploits of last year will probably prove beyond us this year, we've certainly made the best possible start to the campaign. The acid test will come on Wednesday, when the Pears travel to Headingley to face Yorkshire.

[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

One-Day Cup, Northern Group

vs Yorkshire

Headingley, Leeds

Worcs innings: Yorkshire won the toss and put the Pears in to bat on a fairly cloudy morning. They were rewarded early doors with some movement off the pitch, and Daryl Mitchell went cheaply for the second game on the trot when he was caught plumb LBW by Ben Coad, but from thereon, both the weather and the innings just got better and better. A fine second-wicket partnership between Travis Head and Joe Clarke came to a desperately unlucky end when Adil Rashid got a fingertip to a Head drive that smashed the non-striker's stumps, running Clarke out, but after useful contributions from Tom Fell and Brett D'Oliveira, it was Ben Cox and Ross Whiteley who steered things home for the Pears, scoring a half-century apiece as they guided the visitors to an imposing 350-6. Need some good, sensible work with the ball now; Yorkshire's main threat is in their top three, and we can't afford to let Kohler-Cadmore run riot in his first match against us.

Yorks innings: That's what we call "a good advertisement for fifty-over cricket". In an insanely tight run-chase, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Cheteshwar Pujara seemed to be making light work of the job in hand until the thirty-over mark, when two wickets in three balls from Dolly appeared to give the visitors the upper hand. However, every big Yorkshire wicket that fell thereafter, far from being the crucial nail in the coffin, seemed to spur the new batsman into overdrive. 258-6 became 296-7, then 307-8 and 333-9 as Rashid, Bresnan and Steven Patterson all went boundary-hunting off some very lax death-bowling, and with one wicket still standing, the equation was reduced to 16 needed off the final over. Four good balls from Charlie Morris, pushing it to 12 needed off two deliveries, seemed to go up in smoke as Andy Hodd hit the penultimate ball for six. However, Morris held his nerve and permitted the Pears to stagger over the line, just.

Worcestershire WIN by four runs

The Verdict: Rather too close for comfort in a game that saw some laughable bowling from both sides, but a win is a win, and the Pears extend their unbeaten run against Yorkshire in this format to three games since 2015. Worcestershire top the Northern Group once more, with a match against winless Durham on Friday offering the opportunity to extend their lead.

[themaclad]

Just about won by four runs