Report Matthew Waite's 34-run over sets Worcestershire up for rapid victory Birmingham Bears condemned to 55-run defeat after stellar allround display ECB Reporters Network 12-Jul-2024 • 23 mins ago Matthew Waite in action for Worcestershire • Getty Images Worcestershire 187 for 6 (Kashif 46, Briggs 2-25) beat Birmingham 132 (Mousley 68, Waite 4-29) by 55 runs Worcestershire Rapids turned the Vitality Blast North Group table upside-down by beating leaders Birmingham Bears by 55 runs in a rain-reduced 17-overs-per-side match at Edgbaston. Rapids piled up 187 for 6 thanks to star contributions at either end of their innings. Kashif Ali launched it with a sparkling 46 from 30 balls and Matthew Waite concluded it in spectacular fashion by whacking 34 from the last over by George Garton.
Waite, who took 5 for 21 against Leicestershire Foxes the previous evening, blasted 36 not out from eight balls. The Bears' reply never recovered from losing both openers for ducks and closed on 132 all out from 15.2 overs.
Only Dan Mousley (68 off 44) threatened for long against a well-focused attack led by Waite (four for 29) and Tom Taylor (3 for 27). Back-to-back wins have retained the Rapids' sliver of hope of qualification for the knockout stage. The Bears remain very strongly placed but a third defeat in 11 games leaves them with plenty still to do to seal a home quarter-final.
The Rapids chose to bat but lost Ed Pollock to the third ball when he pulled Zak Foulkes to mid-on where Sam H.
