Notts Outlaws' hopes of reaching the knockout stages of the Vitality Blast faded at New Road this evening, as they're defeated by fellow qualifying contenders Worcestershire Rapids.

The Rapids amassed 206 for seven thanks to punchy contributions from the top five, with Dillon Pennington taking three for 34 for the visitors.

The Outlaws replied with 161 all out (Tom Moores 57 off 29, Matt Montgomery 47 off 22) to suffer a defeat which leaves their qualification hopes also hanging by a thread. The Outlaws must beat Lancashire Lightning tomorrow and hope that Warwickshire Bears and Leicestershire Foxes lose. The Rapids, meanwhile, their group games over, need the Bears, Foxes and Outlaws to lose, accompanied by the required seismic shift in net run-rate.

Both sides require a highly unlikely cocktail of results from the final round of games if they're to qualify. 

The Rapids were put in but Isaac Mohammed (27 off 15) delivered a vibrant start before he was superbly held on the deep mid-wicket boundary by Calvin Harrison.

D’Oliveira and Kashif Ali kept the tempo high with a stand of 62 from 39 balls. Kashif (34 off 21) lifted Liam Patterson-White to long on and D’Oliveira steered Pennington to slip but Brookes and Adam Hose bashed 59 from 28 balls.

Hose (33 off 21) lifted Pennington to long off but Brookes struck the ball beautifully to thunder to an 18-ball half-century, and went on to take his side past 200 in the final over.

The Outlaws’ chase suffered early damage when Freddie McCann sliced a slog at the eighth ball, from Khurram Shahzad, to cover and Jack Haynes was caught by Blast debutant Ben Gibbons at long on. Gibbons took a simpler catch from a Joe Clarke scoop off Shahzad and when Moises Henriques skewed Brookes to backward point, the Outlaws were 49 for four.

Montgomery kept his side in contention by flailing a six and nine fours, and started to unnerve the home fans when he took 19 from a Ben Allison over before lifting the last ball of it to deep cover.

Brookes then had Sams and Patterson-White caught off successive balls. Moores peered through the gloaming to hit a 27-ball half-century but his departure, to another fine boundary catch, this time by Hose, effectively ended the content.

Both these teams still harbour a vestigial hope of qualification - the Rapids having played their final match tonight and the Outlaws with one remaining home game against group leaders Lancashire Lightning tomorrow night.