Adam Hose hit his highest Vitality Blast score for Worcestershire and Matthew Waite returned his career best figures in T20 cricket as Worcestershire defeated Leicestershire Foxes by 16 runs in the Vitality Blast at Visit Worcestershire New Road.
Hose surpassed his 61 against Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Northampton last summer as Worcestershire achieved their highest score of the season.
Hose’s knock spanned just 39 balls as Worcestershire surpassed last weekend’s previous best of 181 for four versus Lancashire Lightning at Emirates Old Trafford.
Worcestershire’s leading scorer in this summer’s competition, followed up his 45 not out against the Lightning in impressive style.
He also received excellent support from opener Kashif Ali who smashed 41 off 25 deliveries.
Youngster Harry Darley then made an explosive start with the ball by claiming two wickets with his first two legitimate deliveries to reduce the Foxes to 9-3.
With Worcestershire’s leading wicket-taker, Tom Taylor, also striking twice Worcestershire reduced the visitors to 28-5.
Waite then took centre stage with a flurry of wickets, including Ben Cox for a half century, to finish with the superb figures of 5-21 as Leicestershire were dismissed for 168 in the final over.
Worcestershire named an unchanged side and kept faith with the players who had been edged out in the final over by Lancashire Lightning at Emirates Old Trafford.
Leicestershire captain, Peter Handscomb, who returned from a shoulder injury, won the toss and put the Rapids into bat.
Club Captain, Brett D’Oliverira, got the Rapids off to a positive start by leg glancing the first delivery from Ben Mike for four and Kashif Ali then pulled Jimmy Neesham to the mid wicket boundary.
D’Oliveira (12) sliced Neesham into the hands of Mike on the third man boundary.
Kashif Ali got into his stride with four and a massive six over backward square leg off successive balls from Josh Hull.
Josh Cobb (7) inside edged Mike for four but was then caught down the leg side by former Worcestershire keeper Ben Cox.
Gareth Roderick straight drove a full toss from Scott Currie to the boundary to bring up the 50 in 5.2 overs and the Rapids ended the powerplay on 61-2.
The keeper-batter then reverse swept Lewis Goldsworthy to the ropes as Leicestershire introduced doubler spin into the attack with Rehan Ahmed in tandem.
Roderick (17) was bowled after aiming to hit Ahmed through the off side and Kashif, having hit Lewis Goldsworthy for a straight six, was given out lbw aiming a blow to the legside.
His 41 came off 25 balls with two sixes and three fours.
Ethan Brookes took advantage of a Hull full toss to square drive him for four and bring up the 100 in the 13th over.
A similar delivery was despatched in clinical fashion by Adam Hose who then cut Currie over wide third man for six before Ethan Brookes (18) was bowled by Goldsworthy aiming a legside blow.
Ed Pollock (1) fell to a good catch over his shoulder at long off by Louis Kimber off Currie who next ball trapped Matthew Waite (0) lbw.
But Hose brought up the 150 with two straight drives for four in a Jimmy Neesham over and went onto complete an excellent 33 ball 50.
He reached 63 with six fours and two sixes before attempting to scoop Neesham and being caught by Cox.
When Leicestershire replied, Rishi Patel, the competition’s leading scorer with 400 runs, was bowled for a duck driving at Tom Taylor.
There was joy then for Darley with his first Blast wicket as Ahmed sliced the ball to Brookes at wide third man.
Darley then bowled a wide but his second legitimate delivery accounted for Handscomb who clipped straight to Pollock at mid wicket to leave the Foxes on 9-3.
There was no let-up for the visitors and Taylor, the Rapids leading wicket-taker this summer, struck again as Sol Budinger went for a big hit and was caught behind.
Neesham departed in the same fashion off Waite but then came some remarkable hitting from Louis Kimber who struck five sixes in two overs.
His 21 ball fifty was the fastest for Leicestershire in the T20 and it needed a fine catch by Cobb in the covers to end his knock off Brookes after adding 85 with Cox.
Two wickets in two balls from Waite ensured there would be no late heroics from Leicestershire as he got rid of Mike and Goldsworthy.
Worcestershire batter, Adam Hose, said: “It’s been a really tough couple of weeks. We had a really good win at Durham in the four-day stuff but other than that it’s been a tough time for everyone in and around the squad.
“To show the courage and bravery we did tonight and put on a good show was excellent. I know it got a bit tight there but everyone should take a lot of confidence from that win.
“It should mean a lot. We know we haven’t performed to the best of our abilities and we lacked confidence at times and last year when we were playing well we got over the line in games that we haven’t necessarily done this year.
“We haven’t played any bad cricket, apart from maybe the first game against Yorkshire, overall we’ve been there and thereabouts, and just lost clinical moments in games.
“Today we were a little bit sharper and I think that has got us over the line today.
“It’s hard to pinpoint what has been the reasons for things.When things aren’t quite going your way, you maybe start searching for things and we know T20 cricket is very volatile as a format and it almost elevates that feeling and makes it 10 times worse than it actually is.
“Realistically you are never too far away from getting things right.”
