Worcestershire stormed into the Metro Bank One-Day Cup final with a dominant 131-run (DLS) victory over Somerset at New Road, powered by a superb spell from Pakistan pacer Khurram Shahzad.
Lategan Leads Worcestershire’s Innings
Batting first, Worcestershire compiled a competitive 275 for 9, thanks to a composed 78 from Daniel Lategan, his highest List A score. Brett D’Oliveira (45) also provided a strong start, with the pair adding 85 in 15 overs.
The Somerset bowlers worked hard, led by Jack Leach’s tight spell of 10-1-28-2 and Ben Green’s 4 for 52, which kept the hosts from running away with the game. Despite wickets falling at intervals, Henry Cullen (32), Matthew Waite (24), and Tom Taylor (22* with three sixes) pushed the total beyond 270.
𝑨𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒕 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒅, “𝑾𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒊𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒖𝒔.”
Shahzad’s Fiery Spell Dismantles Somerset
Chasing 276, Somerset collapsed under the fiery pace of Shahzad. Despite starting with two wides in his first over, the right-arm pacer produced a match-winning spell of 4 for 36. He dismissed Tom Lammonby, Lewis Goldsworthy, Archie Vaughan, and Thomas Rew in quick succession, leaving the visitors reeling at 108 for 7.
“𝑺𝒉𝒂𝒉𝒛𝒂𝒅’𝒔 𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒕’𝒔 𝒕𝒐𝒑 𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒆,” 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉.
The rain break only worsened Somerset’s position, as they returned needing 165 runs from just 14.2 overs. Their tailenders offered little resistance, and the team folded for 141, sealing Worcestershire’s emphatic win.
Road to Trent Bridge
The victory sends Worcestershire to the final at Trent Bridge on September 20, with momentum firmly on their side. Shahzad’s blistering performance, coupled with Lategan’s maturity at the crease, ensured a night of loud celebrations for the home crowd.
Also Read: Dawson’s Brilliance Guides Hampshire to One-Day Cup Final
