HEREFORDSHIRE Enjoy a Day of Contrasting Fortunes in their NCCA T20 Double-Header

27 May 2025   |   By Richard Prime

HEREFORDSHIRE enjoyed a day of contrasting fortunes in their NCCA T20 double-header against Wiltshire at Eastnor.

After suffering a crushing eight-wicket reverse in the first of the two games, Herefordshire turned things around to dramatic effect when they won the second match by 50 runs, despite posting a lower score in the second game than they had in the first.

Herefordshire’s star in their second-game win was all-rounder James Rudge, who produced the best figures ever by a county bowler in the T20 competition – and the first-ever five-wicket haul – when he returned 5-10 from his four overs.

Rudge received excellent support from fellow seamer Sam Keeling-Wright – 1-14 from his four overs – with Ben Clarke (2-24), Ollie Walker (1-14) and skipper Matt Pardoe (1-12) also picking up wickets.

Wiltshire had at one stage been reduced to 52-7 before some late blows by the tail reduced the margin of victory.

Ironically, considering how comfortable the victory eventually was, there had been some doubts over whether Herefordshire’s 163-9 had set a challenging enough target.

Ollie Walker (37) and Luke Powell (32) had led the way with the bat, while there were other useful contributions from Pardoe (22), Sinel Gunarathne (14) and Rudge (14).

The doubts had arisen after the comparatively easy way in which Wiltshire had chased down their 170-run target in the first match.

After Herefordshire had been invited to bat first, Hasan Mahmood had set the tone on his debut by hoisting the first ball of the match for a massive six.

The debutant went on to score 29 but the best batting came from Walker, who lashed two sixes and eight fours in his 42-ball 62.

There was good support, too, from Pardoe (16), Luke Tulacz (18), Powell

(14) and Rudge (15 not out) as Herefordshire batted well.

But Wiltshire had 71 on the board before the first wicket fell and Jack Mynott (77 not out) and Jake Goodwin (53) continued the onslaught with a 75-run stand for the second wicket.

Imaad Mahmood (1-21) and Keeling-Wright (1-34) picked up the two wickets to fall.

Herefordshire are next in action when they travel to Wimborne to take on Dorset on June 8.

CAPTION: James Rudge produced Herefordshire’s best-ever T20 figures when he took 5-10.