Hosting a passionate rivalry that dates to an inaugural First-Class contest in 1899, Worcestershire and Warwickshire have enjoyed many memorable moments through the years.
Despite the intense derby that exists whenever the two side meet on the pitch, a host of players from either side have made the short trip up or down the M42 over the years to represent both clubs.
Today, we are taking a closer look at some of the most famous faces to have represented both the Pears and Bears in recent times.
Ethan Brookes
After leaving Warwickshire in 2023, Ethan Brookes was given the chance to play regular first-team cricket at Worcestershire. He signed a two-year deal in August 2023, which was renewed this summer just gone with a long-term contract.
Ethan has become a key all-rounder across all formats but has excelled specifically in white-ball cricket. During the 2024 summer he recorded his best T20 bowling figures of 4-41 against Yorkshire at New Road.
His red-ball capabilities have continued to flourish, with Ethan’s standout moment coming in the Rothesay County Championship against his former club last season.
Brookes scored a career-best 140 in the first innings at Edgbaston and followed it with a rapid 87 in the second. Across the match he hit 15 sixes, breaking Lord Ian Botham’s record.
In the same month he scored a Vitality Blast best of 57 from 20 balls against Notts Outlaws, adding two more half-centuries later in the tournament to confirm his role as the Rapids go-to finisher.
He recently made his franchise debut for Sylhet Titans in the Bangladesh Premier League and remains one to watch this season.
Emily Arlott
Em Arlott represented Worcestershire from 2013 to 2024 before returning to Warwickshire, but it was as a Worcestershire Player the right-arm seamer became a trailblazer in the women’s game.
Her best figures came in the Royal London One-Day Cup against Somerset, where she took 4-25 in a dominant victory. In 2019 she enjoyed her strongest season, claiming 19 wickets across white-ball competitions and being named Players’ Player of the Year for for the Worcestershire Rapids Women.
Em was selected in the PCA Women’s Team of the Year in 2021, 2022 and 2023, and she was among the first 41 women awarded a professional contract in 2020. She made her England women’s national cricket team debut in 2025 and has since appeared in all three formats.
Adam Hose
Adam Hose joined Worcestershire in 2023 after five seasons with Warwickshire and quickly became an influential figure at New Road, appointed T20 vice-captain of the Rapids.
Last summer Adam inducted himself into Worcestershire’s record-books, as the middle-order batter produced a sensational career-best score of 266, breaking Damian D’Oliveira’s previous Worcestershire record for a number-four batter.
During that innings he shared a record 395-run third-wicket stand with Jake Libby, registering his first double century and earning PCA Player of the Month for June.
Adam played a key role in the club’s promotion to Division One of the Rothesay County Championship in 2023, whilst more recently striking a superb 95 from 51 balls at Trent Bridge in the Vitality Blast T20 to help guide the Rapids to victory in a thrilling match against Notts Outlaws.
Charis Pavely
Charis Pavely represented Worcestershire from until 2024, after making her debut for the club against Berkshire in 2021.
An all-rounder by trade, Charis’ spin bowling regularly brought her success, with her best figures for the club an impressive 3-7 against Shropshire in May 2022, the same season the Worcestershire women’s side won their T20 group and later successfully won the tournament’s Finals Day.
Charis progressed from England Under-19s to the senior international set-up, making her full international bow for England Women in a T20 against Ireland in Dublin, in September 2024.
Enjoying a taking 3-19 from four overs, Charis had shown her skills non the biggest stage, helping her to build a reputation as a canny white-ball operator, as shown in The Hundred tournament where she has featured for Birmingham Phoenix.
Book your tickets now to watch the two sides go head-to-head at New Road this summer!
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