Wins for Pears, Gloucs, Somerset & Hants in cup

Worcestershire pulled off a dramatic run chase to beat Kent as they created a four-way tie with Wednesday’s fellow One-Day Cup victors Hampshire and Somerset on eight points at the top of Group A, along with well beaten Derbyshire.

On a showery day that affected three of the four group games, Joe Weatherley hit 93 to help Hampshire hammer Derbyshire by 143 runs, while Somerset also comfortably beat Northants by seven wickets.

But in the third Group A game, Worcestershire were made to work a lot harder for victory.

Despite stand-in skipper Jake Libby getting run out for 75 with just 27 more runs needed, it took two National Counties discoveries Hishaam Khan and Tom Hinley to hold their nerve and get the Pears home with seven balls to spare.

Libby struck his fourth half-century in this year’s competition to help his weakened side – missing nine senior players through illness or injury – win for the fourth time in five games.

After a three-wicket burst from 18-year-old Shropshire-born paceman Jack Home reduced Kent to 70-5, they still looked in trouble at 115-6 before Grant Stewart (78) and Charlie Stobo (72) conjured up List A best batting performances to help their side recover to 259 all out.

But Libby then hit 75 off 68 balls to take his competition run tally to 287, aided by a return to form from Rob Jones (57).

In a game reduced to 48 overs a side, it looked like the hosts were wobbling on 238-7, but Khan and Hinley coolly saw them home on 260-7.

Last year’s beaten finalists Hampshire made it four home group wins out of four as they thrashed Derbyshire by 143 runs at Southampton.

In only his second appearance in this year’s competition, Weatherley put on 113 for the second wicket with Nick Gubbins (62) as Hampshire piled up 295-8.

Derbyshire were already stumbling before their final four wickets went down for six runs in the space of nine balls, thanks to teenage paceman Dom Kelly becoming only the third Hampshire player to take a List A hat-trick – and their first since West Indies great Malcolm Marshall against Surrey in 1981.

After dismissing Zak Chappell and Harry Moore with the final two balls of the 35th over, the 18-year-old then returned to trap last man Daryn Dupavillon lbw to finish with 5-19 and bowl out the visitors for 152.

It was only a second defeat in the competition for Derbyshire, who return to action on Friday when they host Kent, while Hampshire and Worcestershire, who now go to co-leaders Somerset, are both on the road.

In a curtain raiser for next month’s T20 Blast quarter-final, also at Wantage Road, Somerset stole a psychological march on hosts Northamptonshire with a comfortable seven-wicket win.

In a match reduced to 49 overs a side by rain, Saif Zaib made 57 as Northants were bundled out for 155 in 37.3 overs, losing their last four wickets for just seven runs in four overs.

Opener Andy Umeed then led the way with 63 in 66 balls, blasting six fours and two sixes, as Somerset reached 156-3 in the 25th over.

In the day’s one Group B game, it was over quickly at Bristol as winless Sussex suffered their latest defeat to make it six losses in six games.

Gloucestershire won by eight wickets for a third victory out of six to move into a scrum of four sides on six points – four behind the two runaway leaders Glamorgan and Warwickshire, who meet at Edgbaston on Friday.

Ajeet Singh-Dale (4-15) and Zaman Akhtar (3-25) did the chief damage as, in a match limited to 41 overs a side, Sussex were restricted to just 132-9.

Singh-Dale and fellow seamer Akhter both returned their best figures in List A cricket.

Cameron Bancroft then hit an unbetaen 49 and was aided by 46 from Miles Hammond in an opening stand of 73, as the hosts reached 133-2 in 20 overs.

Group A

Manchester: Lancashire v Middlesex

Group B

Edgbaston: Warwickshire v Glamorgan

Scarborough: Yorkshire v Leicestershire

Group A

Derby: Derbyshire v Kent

Chester-le-Street: Durham v Hampshire

Taunton: Somerset v Worcestershire

Group B

Chelmsford: Essex v Surrey

Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire v Gloucestershire