County Championship 2025. Division 1. Somerset v Worcestershire. 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 7^th April. Taunton.

Will Smeed was unavailable for selection due to injury.

Somerset.  A.M. Vaughan, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, T.B. Abell, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), K.L. Aldridge, C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M.J. Leach.

Worcestershire. G.H. Roderick (w), J.D. Libby, Kashif Ali, E.A. Brookes, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira (c), M.J. Waite, T.A.I. Taylor, B.M.J. Allison, T.I. Hinley, A.W. Finch.

Overnight. Worcestershire 154. Somerset 187 for 4. Somerset lead by 33 runs with six first innings wickets standing.

Second day – Banton’s day

Kashif Ali, the eighth bowler Worcestershire had used, bowled the final over of the day. Leg breaks from the River End. Tom Banton pushed the first ball of the over quietly to mid-on. A typical end-of-day shot. Silence from the crowd. A tense silence. Not the typical end to a day. Banton attempted to reverse sweep Kashif’s second ball. Not a typical end-of-day stroke. It ran fine to the boundary. It was not the first time in the day that Banton had reached the boundary with a reverse sweep. Except this time, he hadn’t. The umpire was signalling byes. “No!” someone shouted in protest. “Oh, come on!” someone else said shaking his head in disbelief. “I heard a noise,” someone added as if providing evidence in support of the other two. Silence again. The third ball left no doubt. Banton drove sharply through the on side to the Garner Gates. Four. Now there were cheers, until again the ground fell silent. The fourth ball, Banton swept. It ran towards fine leg, and the batters ran two. Leg byes the umpire signalled. “Oh, come on!” someone said, the protests becoming ever more exasperated. Silence again. Kashif bowled again. Banton pulled through midwicket again. The deep midwicket fielder reached for the ball, but it bounced past him and over the rope.

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County Championship 2025. Division 1. Somerset v Worcestershire. 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 7^th April. Taunton.

Will Smeed was unavailable for selection due to injury.

Somerset.  A.M. Vaughan, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, T.B. Abell, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), K.L. Aldridge, C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M.J. Leach.

Worcestershire. G.H. Roderick (w), J.D. Libby, Kashif Ali, E.A. Brookes, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira (c), M.J. Waite, T.A.I. Taylor, B.M.J. Allison, T.I. Hinley, A.W. Finch.

Toss. Somerset. Elected to field.

First day – A day turned on its head

For much of the day there was a wind blowing across the face of the elevated section of the Trescothick Pavilion which caused most to don jackets or anoraks. Then, as is the case in those seats, as the day moved through the afternoon, the sun slowly sank below the western end of the wing roof and progressively warmed the seats as it passed along them from the Gimblett’s Hill end to the Ondaatje end. As the sun made its way along the seats, in the middle, Somerset were busy building an advantage out of a difficult start. In most of the rest of the ground spectators had the benefit of that sun, uncommonly warm in comparison to most previous Aprils, for most of the day. Somerset supporters, and a few Worcestershire ones, rewarded the sun by coming out in numbers, two thousand, perhaps a few more, by my count. It was, that chill start on the north face of the Trescothick Pavilion apart, perfect weather for watching cricket. The crowd was buoyed by it, and by the start of a new season. As a result, the buzz that marks the start of a Championship match had an extra fizz to it. Meeting old friends again, exchanging winter memories, helped fuel the atmosphere too. There were broad smiles all around, and a general sigh of relief that the cricket was back.

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County Championship 2025. Division 1. Somerset v Worcestershire. 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 7^th April. Taunton.

Will Smeed was unavailable for selection due to injury.

Somerset.  A.M. Vaughan, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, T.B. Abell, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), K.L. Aldridge, C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M.J. Leach.

Worcestershire. G.H. Roderick (w), J.D. Libby, Kashif Ali, E.A. Brookes, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira (c), M.J. Waite, T.A.I. Taylor, B.M.J. Allison, T.I. Hinley, A.W. Finch.

Overnight. Worcestershire 154 and 280 for 5. Somerset 670 for 7 dec. Worcestershire trail by 236 runs with five second innings wickets standing.

Final day – Lightning doesn’t strike twice

The Quantocks were stunning all day. They looked so close, it felt as if you could reach out and touch them. And yet, they remained, as always, tantalisingly out of reach. On the field, as the day progressed, the match seemed just as tantalisingly out of reach for Somerset. Victory was as clear in the eye as the Quantocks, and yet, by the middle of the afternoon, winning seemed a wicket too far. The Somerset bowlers kept to their task. Lewis Gregory and his close advisers tried every tactic under cricket heaven as they tried to hew a wicket out of a pitch as steadfastly unforgiving and obdurate as the bats of the Worcestershire batters. In the field, the players repeatedly shouted encouragement to each other. The crowd, a typical final day crowd of perhaps five or six hundred, shouted and clapped its own encouragement, especially in a tense final hour when the eye was as much on the clock as on the middle.

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County Championship 2024. Division 1. Worcestershire v Somerset 26th, 27th, 29th and 29th April. Kidderminster.

Jack Leach, (knee injury), Tom Abell (hamstring) and Craig Overton (rested) were unavailable.

Worcestershire. J.D. Libby, G.H. Roderick (w), Kashif Ali, R.P. Jones, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira, J.O. Holder, M.J. Waite, J. Leach, B.J. Gibbon, A.W. Finch.

Somerset, M.T. Renshaw, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, L.P. Goldsworthy, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M. Pretorius, S. Bashir.

Overnight. Somerset 309 for 9 dec. Worcestershire 107 for 1. Worcestershire trail by 202 runs with nine first innings wickets standing.

Third day 28th April – “You can walk a wicket”

There was evidence everywhere of heavy overnight rain when I looked out of the window at half past eight. Everything was wet, rain was spattering heavily into puddles and people were scuttling across the courtyard on their way to the hotel restaurant for breakfast. It was a scene which gave no confidence that play would start on time, and the rain didn’t relent for another hour and a half. No play before lunch I concluded. However, after the unexpectedly prompt start after rain on the second day, I kept a close eye on the Somerset CCC live blog, the most reliable and prompt source of information on playing conditions I have found at Somerset away matches. With half an hour’s notice, the blog conveyed the announcement that play would start at ten minutes past twelve. The ground was a mile and a half from my hotel, and I needed to buy lunch on the way. Kidderminster was a quick-drying ground I had been informed, but two hours after a night of heavy rain on already wet ground?

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County Championship 2024. Division 1. Worcestershire v Somerset 26th, 27th, 28th and 29th April. Kidderminster.

Jack Leach, (knee injury), Tom Abell (hamstring) and Craig Overton (rested) were unavailable.

Worcestershire. J.D. Libby, G.H. Roderick (w), Kashif Ali, R.P. Jones, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira, J.O. Holder, M.J. Waite, J. Leach, B.J. Gibbon, A.W. Finch.

Somerset, M.T. Renshaw, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, L.P. Goldsworthy, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M. Pretorius, S. Bashir.

Overnight. Somerset 309 for 9 dec. Worcestershire 14 for 0. Worcestershire trail by 295 runs with ten first innings wickets standing.

Second day 27th April – A bitter wind blew

It was not a day to be in a hotel a mile and a half from the ground, virtually all of it a steep upward gradient. Flecks of rain on the bedroom window and wet ground outside joined forces with an indeterminate weather forecast for the morning to throw me into confusion about when to set off for the match. Ever the optimist (who isn’t where cricket and weather are concerned?), I ventured out, large Somerset umbrella in hand. The umbrella was a mixed blessing, for if Somerset supporters were to carry only one memory away from Kidderminster, it would be of the icy wind which cut into the face. The rain, a few spots, turned into a persistent drizzle as I walked. Combined with the wind, the drizzle made for a formidable opponent. Walking into it meant holding the umbrella horizontally in front of me as it was buffeted furiously from side to side obscuring first one oncoming pedestrian then another. Turning a corner would transform it into a sail, dragging me headlong, point first, towards another unfortunate pedestrian while threatening to blow inside out.

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County Championship 2024. Division 1. Worcestershire v Somerset 26^th, 27^th, 29^th and 29^th April. Kidderminster.

This match was originally scheduled to be played at Worcester. However, due to repeated flooding of the New Road ground during the winter it was moved to Kidderminster.

Jack Leach, (knee injury), Tom Abell (hamstring) and Craig Overton (rested) were unavailable.

Worcestershire. J.D. Libby, G.H. Roderick (w), Kashif Ali, R.P. Jones, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira, J.O. Holder, M.J. Waite, J. Leach, B.J. Gibbon, A.W. Finch.

Somerset, M.T. Renshaw, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, L.P. Goldsworthy, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), C. Overton, J.H. Davey, M. Pretorius, S. Bashir.

Toss. Worcestershire. Elected to field.

First day 26^th April – Cricket in April – with a tinge of 1965

Somerset had not played a Championship match at Kidderminster since 1965 in the days of Roy Virgin, Bill Alley and Brian Langford for Somerset, and Ron Headley, Tom Graveney and one B.L. D’Oliveira for Worcestershire. Captaining Worcestershire in 2024 was another B.L. D’Oliveira, grandson of the first, although Brett rather than Basil and the third D’Oliveira in line for Worcestershire after the late Damian, son of the first and father of the third. In 1965, both Worcestershire and Somerset had been bowled out for less then a hundred once in the match, Somerset had made 130 in their other innings, Worcestershire had reached 131 for 1 in their second innings to win by nine wickets, and the match was over inside two days. It must have been a pace bowlers’ paradise. Jack Flavell and Len Coldwell who took over 2,600 first-class wickets between them, each averaging 21, and yet played only 11 Test matches in total, took all 20 Somerset wickets. For Somerset, seamers Fred Rumsey and Bill Alley took ten of the 11 Worcestershire wickets to fall. Different times. Different, uncovered, pitches.

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County Championship 2024. Division 1. Worcestershire v Somerset. 26^th, 27^th, 28^th and 29^th April. Kidderminster.

Jack Leach, (knee injury), Tom Abell (hamstring) and Craig Overton (rested) were unavailable.

Worcestershire. J.D. Libby, G.H. Roderick (w), Kashif Ali, R.P. Jones, A.J. Hose, B.L. D’Oliveira, J.O. Holder, M.J. Waite, J. Leach, B.J. Gibbon, A.W. Finch.

Somerset, M.T. Renshaw, S.R. Dickson, T.A. Lammonby, A.R.I. Umeed, T. Banton, J.E.K. Rew (w), L. Gregory (c), K.L. Aldridge, M. Pretorius, J.T. Ball, S. Bashir.

Overnight. Somerset 309 for 9 dec and 5 for 1. Worcestershire 451. Somerset trail by 137 runs with nine second innings wickets standing.

Final day 29^th April – Watching cricket in April

The wind that blows across a cricket field in April bites with the teeth of a prairie dog which does not let go. No-one escapes. At Kidderminster, where the ground is open on all sides, the wind enjoys free reign to do as it pleases to whom it pleases, and it did as it pleased across most of the four days of this match. The girl serving burgers from a hot plate in the burger van was frozen. Matching their coats, the umpires wore white snoods which encased their necks and faces up to their ears. They looked like the invisible man from the 1958 television series with his face swathed in white bandages. To match their trousers, they wore black gloves. The stewards were bulked out with enough layers to have passed for an American police SWAT squad. Spectators, those brave enough, or lacking sufficient discretion to know better than to watch cricket in such weather, wore a mottled array of defences. They ranged from tightfitting, designer fashioned, windproof jackets zipped so tightly to the larynx that if the cold did not get the occupant a lack of oxygen would, to anoraks and scarves so battered by a winter without apparent end that they seemed on the point of abject surrender. Not that their owners would dream of letting them surrender, for the next match was only three days away.

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