[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Three

Morning: Worcestershire only managed to add five more runs to the overnight total before Joe Leach miscued a lofted shot over the infield and was caught at mid-off, setting Lancashire a very flimsy 126 to win. If the total was to be defended then early breakthroughs followed by wickets at regular intervals were required, and to be fair, the Pears did accomplish the first part. Charlie Morris was the first to strike, tempting Hameed into a drive that was edged and flew like a bullet to first slip, leaving Lancs 8-1. A period of consolidation followed, but with his very first ball of the innings Ed Barnard - struggling a bit for form by his high standards - removed Jake Lehmann LBW, and two wickets in two balls from Leach dismissed Jennings and Livingstone, reducing the Red Rose to 32-4 and giving Worcs yet another lifeline. But Jones and Vilas were scalps that needed to be claimed quickly if victory was still to be on the cards, and when their watchful partnership survived unscathed to lunch on 59-4, the writing was already on the wall.

Afternoon: Sure enough, no further wickets enabled Lancashire to cruise home by mid-afternoon.

Worcestershire LOSE by six wickets

The Verdict: A hard-fought match in which Worcestershire were second-best with both bat and ball, but somehow managed to drag themselves back into contention several times before finally succumbing. Good fighting spirit, but a lot more than that will be needed to bounce back next week against Middlesex.