There has been something quite satisfying about Worcestershire Rapids’ run to the Metro Bank One Day Cup final.

When they take the field to face Hampshire at Trent Bridge, the New Road outfit will do so off the back of a record thus far that saw them twice go unbeaten for four games in a row.

In fact, their only defeat from nine games - a six-wicket loss to Gloucestershire - was directly in the middle of what has been an otherwise-flawless run to the showpiece.

A high-scoring tie to kick off the campaign against none other than Notts Outlaws in Welbeck, calculated via DLS, illustrated a fighting spirit that embodied their tournament.

Centuries from Jake Libby and Kashif Ali, who combined for a fourth-wicket stand worth 180, saw them post 312-7 before rain curtailed their innings after one ball of the 48th over.

While Notts were the only side to avoid defeat against either Worcestershire or their fellow finalists Hampshire in 2025, they were still only able to record a stalemate against the Rapids.

Ethan Brookes claimed three wickets and two apiece went to Matthew Waite and Brett D’Oliveira, but it was Pakistani overseas Khurram Shahzad who held his nerve to defend four off the final over.

Fired up by pulling such a result out of the bag having been up against it early on, the Rapids went on to win their next three fixtures in a row to state their dominance.

Essex were convincingly dispatched by 60 runs thanks to another hefty total, with the visitors in Chelmsford making 340-9 as Kashif, Libby, and Brookes all flourished again with half-centuries.

Leading wicket-taker Ben Allison, on his return to Essex, picked up one of the 17 scalps he would claim over the competition, but it was Brookes again, with 3/52, who shone to see out the result.

Having laid down a marker of being able to comfortably defend a posted total, the Rapids turned on the style to showcase a different side of their game, as two successful chases followed.

Most tellingly ahead of the final, the first of those was a measured win over Hampshire, as in a bowler-friendly matchup that saw just 390 runs in total, Worcestershire eked out a five-wicket win.

Allison had ripped through Hampshire with 6/35 in the second-best individual bowling performance in the entire competition, but the Rapids were forced to bat patiently.

They did so successfully, as D’Oliveira’s 52 held the innings together and Kashif, Libby, and Brookes all contributed again to see the side over the line in the 41st over.

Calm batting showcased, a return to type followed in a trip to Repton School to face Derbyshire, when they successfully chased down 316 to win by four wickets.

D’Oliveira was again in the runs, this time with a far more fluent 138, while Libby made 69 to back up the trio of Khurram, Allison, and Fateh Singh all claiming three wickets apiece.

Flying high, the Rapids suffered a brief - and ultimately, unique - bump against Gloucestershire to go down by six wickets on a rare occasion their batting let them down.

Restricted to 237-8, with Kashif’s 36 the top score, two wickets for Khurram were not enough to stop fifties from Ollie Price, Ben Charlesworth, and Jack Taylor leading the Glosters to victory.

It is said, though, that defeats can be more valuable, certainly from an introspection point of view, than wins, and so it proved as the Rapids embarked on another four-game winning streak.

Less than a week later, Glamorgan and Leicestershire, the last two champions of this competition respectively, were seen off in the space of 48 hours.

The Welsh outfit could only watch on as their 297-7 was overhauled with ten balls and five wickets to spare thanks to Rob Jones’ imperious unbeaten 110 from 108 balls.

Two days later, the Foxes - enjoying a sterling season of their own in the red-ball arena - were edged out in a thriller by 16 runs in which both sides netted totals north of 300.

Worcestershire, having posted 328 all out thanks to another century from D’Oliveira and a further 67 from Jones, successfully restricted their hosts to 312-9 as Allison claimed three wickets.

Another six-wicket victory on DLS over Surrey confirmed their status as group winners, and sent them to the semi-finals, where they would host 2024 runners-up Somerset.

Any Worcestershire fans who were nervous that their appearance on the big stage might be too much, needn’t have worried in the slightest, as the Rapids produced their biggest win yet.

A thumping 131-run victory at New Road, in which the hosts racked up 275-9 thanks to 78 from young South African Dan Lategan before dismissing Somerset for just 141, confirmed their spot.

It feels likely that the 2025 One Day Cup will be remembered as the summer when the Rapids roared back into prominence.

Hampshire captain Nick Gubbins has stood out as an individual leading light and could become the leading run-scorer in the competition with 19 further runs at Trent Bridge next week.

Such a talisman has not been present in Worcestershire’s lineup; instead, they have proven that this sport is a team game, with match-winning contributions across the board.

Not since 2004 have Worcestershire reached a List A final, and now, they have the opportunity to lift only their second trophy in the format this century.

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