Club Captain Brett D’Oliveira says Gareth Roderick deserves to go on and complete another hundred after the pair led a Worcestershire fightback on day one of the LV=Insurance County Championship match with Nottinghamshire at New Road.
The pair put on 169 in 56 overs for the sixth wicket as Worcestershire recovered from 99-5 to reach 297-7 by the close on a seam-friendly pitch.
D’Oliveira hit a splendid 85, and Roderick will resume on Wednesday unbeaten on 91 in his first innings since scoring 172 not out versus Glamorgan at Cardiff.
D’Oliveira said: “Would you have settled for 297-7 at lunchtime? Absolutely. I thought they bowled incredibly well upfront on a helpful wicket. Fortunately, myself and Gareth (Roderick) managed to put on a partnership there.
“Extremely pleased to get the team out of a sticky situation. I would have liked to have gone on and got a hundred, but unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be.
“But I’m glad Gareth is still there, and he deserves to get a hundred tomorrow. He played an extremely good knock.
“He is a tremendous and quality player. We all know that up in the dressing room, we’ve backed him to the hilt, and it’s great to see those runs on the board.
“Gareth has shown some great character to come through some tricky periods.”
D’Oliveira says it is important the Worcestershire attack bowl in the right areas when Nottinghamshire eventually launch their reply.
He said: “It is also crucial to stay in the present. We are not ahead in the game at all. They are more than capable of getting those runs, the Nottinghamshire batters.
“It is about putting the ball in the right areas tomorrow when we get the opportunity.
“We would have bowled had we won the toss, and it presented its challenges. The ball moved off the seam throughout the day.
“I think it probably got a little bit slower towards the back end of the day. We are going to have to bowl well and bowl a good length when we get the opportunity.
“The plan tomorrow is to bat for as long as we can, get as many runs as we can, and when we get the ball in our hand, it is about stacking it in the same area for long periods, and hopefully, we will get our rewards.
“I think the pitch will carry on doing enough if we bowl in the right areas for long periods of time, we will get enough out of the wicket, and hopefully, we can hold onto the catches.”
One member of the attack will be Matthew Waite, who has joined Worcestershire on loan for the rest of the season before joining permanently on a three-year contract.
D’Oliveira said: “We are delighted to have him for the last two games. He is obviously joining us next year, so it is nice to get him in a couple of games early.
“Joe Leach is waiting on a new arrival with his family, and that takes priority, so it presents an opportunity for Matt, and we know what he is like with the ball in hand.”
