Worcester a source of discomfort for Yorkshire as they slip to another T20 defeat

The day was breezy and overcast, the cathedral rather ominous-looking against the grey skies.

Seagulls circled in front of it as they soared above the brown-coloured waters of the River Severn.

A crowd of 2,750 was present inside New Road.

Thus was set the scene for the second of 14 group games, both sides having lost their opening match last week.

And, after a false start on Friday, when they went down to Northamptonshire at Headingley, Yorkshire stumbled out of the blocks again, losing by 60 runs (DLS) in a one-sided contest, their sixth defeat in nine competitive fixtures this season.

Worcestershire made 201-5, D’Oliveira top-scoring with a T20 career-best 79 from 48 balls with seven fours and four sixes, and Adam Hose striking 54 from 37 deliveries, the pair sharing 117 for the third-wicket in 11.3 overs.

In reply, only Dom Bess (41 not out), Adam Lyth (38) and Matty Revis (33) contributed, Worcestershire restricting Yorkshire to 135-8 before rain prevented the final three balls of the game being bowled.

“Once again, it was disappointing,” said Anthony McGrath, the Yorkshire head coach. “It was a good pitch - 200 was maybe a little bit too many (to concede), but we felt confident we could chase that down.

“It was pretty similar to the other night; we lost wickets early on, and that can obviously be crucial when you're chasing 200. So, yeah, I think the first two games, we’ve just not been on it individually, and we know that we’ve got to be better.”

On a day when Yorkshire fielded three frontline spinners, Bess, the most senior member of the trio, bowled the opening over from the New Road end.

Will O’Rourke, who struggled on his Yorkshire debut on Friday, leaking 67 runs in the club’s second-most expensive T20 analysis, started poorly from the Diglis End as D’Oliveria helped himself to a brace of pulled fours.

Pollock then lofted Bess for six over mid-wicket before cutting him to short third-man, a tame dismissal that left Worcestershire 25-1 in the third.

O’Rourke hit back well when he struck with the first ball of his second over, Kashif Ali lofting to Will Sutherland at mid-on, the hosts reaching 58-2 at the end of the powerplay.

D’Oliveira maintained the impetus in the seventh over when he struck leg-spinner Jafer Chohan for two sixes down the ground. Worcestershire were 95-2 at halfway, D’Oliveira reaching his fifty from 34 balls, and Hose his half-century from 33 deliveries.

There was no grandstand finish from the hosts, however, Yorkshire conceding only 36 from the final four overs and taking three wickets in the process, all to good catches.

First, D’Oliveira was held at cover by Malan off Sutherland; then Hose lofted Bess to Lyth at long-off, before Will Luxton pulled off the best of the bunch, diving forward at long-on to remove Ethan Brookes off Sutherland.

Worcestershire, who were without the former Yorkshire all-rounder Matthew Waite due to a finger injury, took two wickets inside the first 13 balls of the chase.

Malan swung across the line at the New Zealand pace bowler Jacob Duffy and was bowled, then Luxton was brilliantly caught on the run on the mid-wicket boundary by Tom Linley after a top-edged pull off Adam Finch.

Finch then showed his football skills when he ran out James Wharton in his follow-through with a deft swing of his right boot as the non-striker and Lyth attempted to steal a quick single, and Yorkshire fell to 39-4 later in the over when Harry Duke holed out to point.

Yorkshire slipped to 40-5 in the final over of the powerplay when Sutherland was caught down the leg-side for a golden duck off Ben Dwarshuis, and all hope effectively disappeared - if it had not already - with the departure of Lyth, caught at deep backward-square by Hinley off Brookes to leave Yorkshire 51-6 in the eighth.

Revis and Bess showed fight in a seventh-wicket stand of 63 from 44 balls, ended when Revis was yorked by a fine slower ball from Duffy.

Chohan was caught at deep backward-point off Dwarshuis as Worcestershire closed out a comfortable win.