[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

Day Four

Morning: Resuming on 350-6 on a sunny Sunday that remained unseasonably cold, Jake Libby and Ed Barnard were still run-hungry, the latter finding the first boundary with a cover-drive off Simon Harmer, before the latter skipped down the pitch and heaved the spinner over long-on for six. It was gone noon before Essex finally broke the marathon partnership, just twelve runs short of what would have been an all-time county record for the seventh wicket, when Dan Lawrence got a ball to turn back through the gate as Barnard attempted a drive, bowling him for a magnificent 128. The stay of Joe Leach was a brief one, as he was strangled down the legside for 1 in the very next over, but just as it looked like the tail might fold, Dillon Pennington came out with a point to prove and helped guide the Pears to lunch at 405-8.

Afternoon: Whether he'd spent time in the nets or just had his Weetabix for breakfast, Pennington was determined to make the most of his cameo, and wheeled out all the shots on his way to a 103-ball half-century, scoring no less than nine boundaries including a pull through fine leg off Paul Walter to bring up the milestone. Throwing caution to the wind shortly after, the number ten was stumped for 56 off the bowling of Simon Harmer, who subsequently dismissed last man Charlie Morris LBW for 6, tragically stranding Libby just five runs short of a new career best. An early tea was taken in the innings break, with Essex left to contemplate a largely academic lead of fifteen runs after Worcestershire's unlikely charge to 475 all out.

Evening: In what remained of the afternoon sunlight, with snow falling elsewhere in the country and clouds rapidly closing in over the River Can, the contest was reduced to a fairly leisurely exercise in batting, bowling and fielding practice. Before the inevitable handshake - or rather, the Covid-friendly fist-bump that's replaced it - there was time for Joe Leach to get the huge reward his captaincy had merited over the weekend, clattering Sir Alastair Cook's middle stump with a peach of a late inswinger for 12. Twenty minutes later we were all done, and the Pears had the honour of being the first team since June 2018 to frustrate Essex on home soil.

Match DRAWN

The Verdict: Short of a miracle win that even the most optimistic Worcestershire fans wouldn't have dared dream of, this was the best possible result to commence the season. Though a flatter-than-usual Chelmsford pitch undoubtedly played a role in the draw, the resilience of Worcestershire - and particularly Jake Libby - shouldn't be underestimated. Carrying the bat for the first time in his career - the first Pears player to do so since Daryl Mitchell against Hampshire in July 2015 - Libby was on the field for every single minute of all four days in this fixture, spending twelve hours at the crease and facing nearly five hundred deliveries. Together with Riki Wessels, Ed Barnard and Dillon Pennington, he weathered over sixty overs of spin from Simon Harmer, enough to skittle most sides twice over, in building Worcs up from 43-4 to a match-saving total of 475. While a critical eye can certainly be cast over the rest of the top order, and appropriate improvements expected next weekend, the county now appears to have a spine that's not easily breakable, and that can only mean good things for the season to come.