Bears beat Pears, Foxes beat Hants in cup quarters
Warwickshire teenager Kai Smith hit the innings of his life to rescue his side from trouble against Midlands rivals Worcestershire and propel the Bears to the One-Day Cup semi-finals.
Coming in number seven at Edgbaston, the 19-year-old called it "something I'll take to my grave" after smashing five sixes and 13 fours in his unbeaten 130 off 104 balls, aided by 75 former skipper Will Rhodes.
The Bears' reward for Friday's four-wicket win will be a trip to Cardiff to face Glamorgan in Sunday's semi-final, while holders Leicestershire will contest in the other last-four game against Somerset at Taunton.
Just as in last year's final, the Foxes booked their place by chasing down a daunting Hampshire total of 290-8 to win by three wickets with just a ball to spare.
Trevaskis and Cox keep cool
In a repeat of last year's final, when Hampshire made 265-5 and looked on course for victory, only to be undone by a stunning Harry Swindells century, this time they had Leicestershire in even more trouble.
Skipper Nick Gubbins hit his highest List A score for Hampshire, a superb 136, backed up by Liam Dawson’s 50 and 18-year-old Dominic Kelly's 39 from just 20 balls as the visitors posted 290-8.
Leicestershire’s star duo, Australia's Peter Handscomb (74) and India’s Ajinkya Rahane (70) then shared a fourth-wicket stand of 128.
But, when Rahane went, they were 188-6 in the 35th over and it looked like Hampshire would avenge that 2023 Trent Bridge final.
But the Foxes were not done, largely thanks to a seventh-wicket stand of 94 in 82 balls between Liam Trevaskis (60 not out) and Ben Cox (45).
But, although Cox was caught in the deep, Tom Scriven came in to help Trevaskis get the job done.
Teenager Smith the Bears hero
Worcestershire had to give up home advantage for their quarter-final as New Road was being used by England Lions and Sri Lanka.
It looked like it would not matter when they made 286-9, thanks to a stylish 112 from skipper Jake Libby, this year's One-Day Cup leading run scorer, who built on the 54 off 64 balls from Bears old boy Ed Pollock.
Warwickshire looked in deep trouble at 77-5, including the loss of captain Ed Barnard for 29 and then Ethan Brookes’ run-out of his former Bears team-mate Michael Burgess from cover point.
As he dived to stop the Warwickshire keeper's cover drive, Burgess aborted his run but just too late as Brookes stood up and threw down one stump at the striker’s end.
But Smith eclipsed his previous List A best score of 44 as the game was turned in a sixth-wicket stand of 181 in 163 balls between Smith and Rhodes, who was out with four overs left but had still done enough to help the Bears get home with six balls to spare.
For all the many connections between the opposing teams including a Worcestershire side run by Ashley Giles and Alan Richardson, the best was arguably Bears opener Theo Wylie and Pears paceman Jack Home, who were both in the Shrewsbury School first XI this summer and only left last month.
