Preview: Warwickshire v Somerset, Royal London Cup (2021)

Captain Will Rhodes wants one final push from his young side as Warwickshire host Somerset in their final Royal London Cup fixture at Edgbaston.

Following Tuesday’s seven-wicket defeat at The Kia Oval, the Bears have an outside chance of qualifying for Saturday’s quarter-final.

Warwickshire would need a convincing win over the Taunton outfit, whilst hoping three other results go nicely in their favour.

It’s certainly a long shot, but Rhodes is keen to stress that whilst there’s an opportunity to progress, there’s also an opportunity to learn.

With a dozen senior players, mostly bowlers, unavailable throughout the campaign, a group of home-grown and local talent has thrived.

“The experience will be massive for them and, these guys will come back,” Rhodes said.

“They’ve had a lot thrown at them these past seven games and witnessed some great innings and bowling performances. They’ll only get better from it.

“Guys such as Jacob Bethell, Ethan Brookes and Manraj Johal will get a lot of confidence playing in this competition and, when they come to play in it next year, they’ll know what it’s about and be better for it.

“We’ve learnt a lot as a team and, I’ve learnt a lot in this competition. I think Tim Bresnan even learnt a lot at The Oval as experienced as he is!

“If we win four of our eight games it’ll be a great achievement with this inexperienced team.

“We’ll try and be a bit of a party pooper to Somerset and ruin their chances of getting through.”

Squad

Will Rhodes (c), Jacob Bethell, Tim Bresnan, Ethan Brookes, Jordan Bulpitt, Michael Burgess (wk), Karl Carver, Manraj Johal, Matt Lamb, Craig Miles, Dan Mousley, Liam Norwell, Ed Pollock, Rob Yates.

How to follow

Members and supporters can watch the live stream from Edgbaston via the Match Centre on edgbaston.com and through the Edgbaston app (available for free on iOS and Android).