Looked at from a distance, Worcestershire may seem to have had a fairly ordinary season last year. Viewed more closely however, their 2024 had elements of both tragedy and triumph. Everyone at the Club had to overcome the shock of the sudden death of left arm spinner Josh Baker in May. They did so with a resolve and dignity that spoke wonders for their morale and team spirit. Meanwhile their sixth place finish in the top flight of the County Championship was their highest since the split into two divisions in 2000. True, they were next to bottom in the North Group of the T20 Blast and narrowly lost at the quarter-final stage of the One Day Cup, but overall the club ended the season stronger than they began.
Looking forward, there is plenty of reason to hope that Worcestershire can once again hold their own in the Championship and can dare to look upwards rather than down towards the relegation area. Solid contributions in both batting and bowling became the norm as last season progressed, with players such as Kasif Ali (batting), Tom Taylor (bowling) and Ethan Brookes (all-rounder) making an impact which they should reasonably hope to repeat in 2025.
It is in the T20 Blast that there is most room for improvement and maybe Worcestershire will take comfort from the fact that several of their defeats last season were by close margins and could have gone either way. They will also hope that their overseas signings will make an impact. West Indian leg-spinner Hayden Walsh was a notable disappointment last year.
The biggest problem that the club has to address is whether New Road can remain as its home ground. Winter time flooding has now become the norm and each event makes the restoration of the ground and, in particular, the playing square more difficult. The thought of a move from such an iconic venue is made even less appealing because the ground must have a limited sales value for development. No-one wants to live or work in a newly built property where it may be necessary to swim to the shops.
Ins and Outs
Worcestershire have signed New Zealander Jacob Duffy for the first three months of the season and Aussie Ben Dwarshius for the T20 Blast. Duffy’s fast-medium bowling has earned him almost 30 white ball international caps and Dwarshius has an excellent T20 record as a left arm fast medium bowler. Together, they should ensure that Worcestershire will improve on last year’s disappointing Blast results.
The club will undoubtedly miss the wholehearted all round contributions of Joe Leach who has retired, while Josh Cobb and Olly Cox have both been released. Other than their overseas signings, the main new players will be Ben Allison (from Essex) and Fateh Singh (from Notts). Allison has a decent record as a pace bowling all-rounder and Singh is in the early stages of a career as a left arm spinner. Both look to have the potential to succeed.
Overseas players: Jacob Duffy (New Zealand, 11 April-30 June), Ben Dwarshuis (Australia, for T20)
In: Ben Allison (Essex), Fateh Singh (Nottinghamshire), Jacob Duffy (Nottinghamshire),
Out: Joe Leach (retired), Josh Cobb (retired), Olly Cox (released)
Key player
Worcestershire will be looking to Gareth Roderick to build on his performances last year. He played in all 37 matches across the three competitions and scored over 1200 runs. Behind the stumps, he finished with the most dismissals of any player in the One Day Cup (23) and was second placed in the County Championship with 46 victims. After a winter playing in South Africa, he is hopefully ready for another season’s hard work.
One to watch
18-year-old Jack Home from Shropshire is a right arm fast medium bowler who made his Worcestershire debuts in all three competitions last year, taking a five wicket haul in the One Day Cup against Derbyshire. In January, he played for England under-19s against South Africa, showing that he can also bat a bit when, from number nine in the order, he scored 123 runs for once out in the first unofficial Test. Worcestershire fans will watch his progress with keen interest.
How will they fare
Whilst County Champions Surrey will hardly be trembling at the possibility of being toppled from their pedestal, the Pears should at least hold their own in the top flight. If they play to their potential, another mid-table result beckons.
In the T20 Blast, Worcestershire will surely improve on their 2024 record of just four wins and ten defeats. Even so, Finals Day looks to be no better than an outside possibility.
They came so close to reaching the semi-finals of the One Day Cup despite having several players injured, that this might be their best bet for success in 2025. Neither of the two overseas players will be available for this competition so maybe another signing will be needed.
Opening fixture: CC v Somerset on April 4 at the County Ground, Taunton
Likely Championship XI
- Roderick
- Libby
- Kashif Ali
- Jones
- Hose
- D’Oliveira
- Brookes
- Waite
- Taylor
- Allison
- Duffy
