That all got very tense didn't it. No issue with Hain but the guys at the other end, deary me...nonsensical from Hassan trying to be a hero. Garton's innings really knackered us, 13 off 22, you could see him tensing up the more dot balls he ate up. First half I thought we fielded exceptionally well and the spinners bowled with great control to wrestle the game back after a decent Worcestershire start. Isaac Mohammed looks a lovely clean hitter to be fair...

Well we really did our best to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. In those last 5 overs we only needed to knock the ball around for singles and 4s - definitely no need for 6s. In that context I thought Garton was perhaps playing the supporting role to Hain who was scoring steadily and sensibly.
Looked a good crowd.

The commentators said an attendance of over 10,000, which is impressive..

The victory last night showed we still have the same fundamental issues with the side, and the mediocre performances of some players.
Yet again Lintott and Hassan were very expensive, Lintotts 3rd over could have cost the game, and yet again, some of the batsmen were out playing totally inappropriate shots for the match situation.

It is time for some players to learn how to play appropriately, or be dropped and then released at the end of their contract. For too long the club has been rewarding mediocrity, by giving contracts, and extentions to players who are not performing to an acceptable standard, signing overseas players who fail to perform and treat thir time with the club as a highly paid holiday, or are, supposedly, white ball specialists, who it seems have no intention of actually honoring the contract they freely and willingly signed to play for the club.
Going forwards there needs to be much more due dilligance and quality control before commiting the clubs funds to signing players and giving extended contracts.

Yes very enthusiastic crowd.

After the game Mousley talked about the 'players taking responsibility' in which he included himself. It is a common perception that footballers are thick, and cricketers are mostly private school educated, therefore above average intelligence, so why on earth can they simply not think through the task in hand.

We had a perfect opportunity to improve our net run rate which could be vital in a tight group. All that was required was sensible batting for the first eight overs or so, mainly dealing with singles, two's and when the bad ball comes along fours, no need whatsoever to go aerial, then with wickets in hand push on take a risk and have a slog.

Latham, Mousley, Moeen, Barnard and Briggs threw their wickets away, Davies after some controlled batting then decided to abandon the sensible approach.

What is the point in winning the toss and putting the other team in to bat if you are not going to take advantage of a low total?

A win is a win, however there is not much future in this competition if the players simply cannot think their way through an innings.

Totally agree, the idea is to look at a total and assess what you need to do to get it. anything around 130-140, should be easy enough unless you have an opposition full of great bowlers. Once you establish a good position, you realise that you just build a total and don't try and clear the ropes if you don't need a massive run-rate. So far, every pitch at home has seen a big playing area where you cannot hit 6's that easily especially if you don't hit the ball 100% perfectly. Last night, some of the catches were well inside the boundary which means we are not grasping this big hitting based on having done the same in previous games and more memorably (Unfortunately) in last seasons quarter-final. Don't our training/management staff say to the players to look at how often a lot of team members get out trying to hit 6's.

The victory last night showed we still have the same fundamental issues with the side, and the mediocre performances of some players.
Yet again Lintott and Hassan were very expensive, Lintotts 3rd over could have cost the game,

Lintott's first two overs were brilliant, though, he was virtually unhittable, i was right behind his arm he was getting vicious drift as well as looping flight, it looked very difficult for the batsman to judge where it would be pitching so i was actually encouraged by Lintott as he landed pretty much every one of his first 12 deliveries and even the poor over, it looked like he was just too full but at least he landed them. At his worst recently he has been sending drag downs down the leg side or full tosses on the stumps but most worryingly he started losing that real zip out of the hand that a leggie needs. he certainly didn't lack that in the first two overs last night.

so, was the pitch that stood 800 runs a week ago suddenly a snakepit, or was it good bowling, or poor batting, or both, from both teams?

Just think the hot weather throughout the week has really dried the pitches out and encouraged the spinners, there was a fair bit of turn, though not excessive. Ball not really coming onto the bat.

Regarding the crowd size, I thought that Bears v Pears T20 matches were usually near sell-outs, so a crowd of just over 10,000 is quite disappointing.

Averages for the Blast so far:
https://www.espncricinfo.com/records/tournament/averages-batting-bowling-by-team/vitality-blast-men-2025-16846?team=1479
Kai Smith stands out as the man who hasn't contributed. Surely bringing Rob Yates in would strengthen the batting and add a bowling option.

On the intelligence/responsibility aspect of players, I think that’s a common theme of most modern sports these days. And it’s a HUGE bugbear of mine.
Too much reliance on stats, game plans, style ideologies, managers & coaches doing the thinking for players. Captains have more and more stopped becoming tacticians on the pitch, inspirational leaders, and are just a mouthpiece for the coach. The best still change and adapt, look at David Willey with his bowling changes against us, that put the pressure on and changed the game.
Players in many sports seem to have an increasing inability to adapt in game. They blindly follow what’s been agreed beforehand. You see it in rugby, coaches running messages on when the other team is playing differently to expected, teams changing styles at half time after trying the same tactics repeatedly, rather than playing what’s in front of them. Rassie Erasmus had different coloured lights to tell the players what to do for penalties.
How often do we see “flair” players in football be replaced by those that will simply do the job the manager asks to fit their system, look at Jack Grealish having the excitement drilled out of him to suit the system.
It’s all well and good having plans, tactics, systems, but the best players have always traditionally been able to play the situation, or overcome it through talent. That’s half the reason you want senior experienced players because they’ve been there and done it in many situations in all kinds of conditions. How many times do you hear “that’s the way we play”, “we approach the game that way and sometimes it doesn’t come off”, just excuses that absolve responsibility.
I don’t think it’s a specific Bears problem, just a symptom of modern sport. A skill that’s being driven from the game.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

Well said!
I agree that coaches (who are often more like instructors than genuine coaches) are taking over in lots of sports. I see that in tennis, coaches are now allowed to coach during matches, which stops players from reading for themselves what is happening and responding.
The best book on sports coaching (for me) is The Inner Game of Tennis by Tim Gallwey, written half a century ago but still worth a read. I went to a workshop that he ran in California and, when he came to the UK, I set up a meeting for him with the ECB. The plan was for him, as an American who knew nothing about cricket, to apply his coaching ideas to cricket. In the end, the ECB couldn't afford him, which was a great shame.

It should be pointed out that Yates was dropped from the T20 side, as happens most years, this time after just one game. I was actually surprised there wasn't a release about him having a "mystery" illness, as that also seems to coinceed with his omission from the side each year.

To be honest, if batting at 8, and only facing a total of 30 deliveries, how much can truly be expected of Kai Smith

Highveld wrote:

To be honest, if batting at 8, and only facing a total of 30 deliveries, how much can truly be expected of Kai Smith

I agree to a point. However, one game he came in with still 7, I think, overs left and failed. The rest he has no chance of settling in and can only swing the bat.