The Vitality Blast returns, and it does so with the biggest fixture in the domestic T20 calendar. The Bears against the Pears takes place on Friday 26 June, as part of a huge doubleheader at EdgBLASTon.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the highly anticipated local derby…
Team news
The Bears have named a 15-player squad for the fixture against Worcestershire, with the starting 11 to be announced at the toss.
Ed Barnard (c), Kai Smith, Chris Woakes, Richard Gleeson, Beau Webster, Usman Tariq, Taz Ali, Dan Mousley, Sam Hain, Jordan Thompson, Alex Davies, George Garton, Rob Yates, Zen Malik, Olly Hannon-Dalby
Current form
While it hasn’t been the Vitality Blast campaign the Bears had hoped for to date, they did pick up a first win of the season last time out against a good Somerset side. Chasing a mammoth 216 to win at the County Ground in Taunton, Beau Webster smashed a blistering 112 off just 61 balls, while Dan Mousley’s unbeaten 71 off 36 deliveries saw Warwickshire home with two balls to spare.
With six games remaining, the Bears will need to win the majority to make a late charge for a place in the next round.
Worcestershire meanwhile have lost their last two games, however the difference in their defeat to Gloucestershire was just three runs. The Pears currently sit fourth in the Central & West Group, with three wins from six games.
Previous meetings
This will be the second time the teams have met in the 2026 Vitality Blast, with Worcestershire running out six-wicket winners at New Road at the end of May. On the night, 45 from Rob Yates and 37 from Jordan Thompson couldn’t propel the Bears to a competitive total, as they reached 141 all out. The Pears then knocked off the runs four wickets down, with Warwickshire looking to respond on home soil this Friday.
Prior to that result, the Bears have had the upper hand in the derby in recent years, winning both fixtures in 2025.
The first of the two wins last year came in a nerve-shredding one wicket win at Edgbaston, thanks largely to a four-wicket haul from Dan Mousley which helped to reduce the Pears to 134 all out. Alex Davies got the bears off to a strong start with 42 off 24 balls in reply, but it was Sam Hain with an unbeaten 38 off 30 balls that got the Bears over the line.
In the reverse fixture at New Road, Hain was at it again with the bat, top scoring with 44 as the Bears set Worcester 177 to win. Three wickets apiece from Hassan Ali (three for 32) and Danny Briggs (three for 37) made sure of a 23-run Bears victory.
Players to watch
Beau Webster
The big-hitting Australian is the leading run-scorer in this year’s Vitality Blast having amassed 288 runs in six innings’ at an average of 48. Standout performances include his 97 off 56 balls at EdgBLASTon against Northants, before two games later he struck his first hundred in T20 cricket with a match-winning 61-ball 112 against Somerset.
Usman Tariq
After a couple of weeks away, Usman Tariq warmed up for the showdown with the Pears by turning out for the Second XI against Northants on Wednesday. With his full repertoire on display, Tariq took three for 21 in four impressive overs and will look to continue that form in front of a bumper crowd at Edgbaston on Friday.
Sikandar Raza (Worcestershire)
The leading run-scorer for the Pears this year, Sikandar Raza has been consistent throughout the 2026 campaign with both bat and ball. Raza, who has over 100 appearances for Pakistan in T20 cricket, signed for Worcestershire for the entirety of this year’s Blast. In his last two outings he’s registered scores of 47 and an unbeaten 36.