Warwickshire’s Dominating Victory Over Essex at Chelmsford as Ed Barnard Shines with 173

Essex 324 for 7 (Browne 75, Hannon-Dalby 3-69) lost to Warwickshire 328 for 3 (Barnard 173) by seven wickets.

The Metro Bank One-Day Cup captain for Warwickshire, who had scored a career-high 165 against Vitality Championship in May, carried his bat to score a seven-wicket triumph over Essex with a score of 173 from 140 balls. As last year’s semi-finalists cruised home with 14 balls remaining, Barnard—whose previous best was 161—was ably supported in match-defining performances by Rob Yates, Will Rhodes, and Michael Burgess.

In front of 2,462 spectators, Essex—who won only one game in the 2023 campaign—was once again on the receiving end after being placed in a wicket with a green tint. Even though Nick Browne declared that this was his fourth List, a career half-century in an innings of 75 from 90 balls that included seven fours, one of which was a run.

The left-handed opener stood to get fifty wickets with Feroze Khushi, seventy one with Robin Das, and fifty-five with Charlie Allison, who then made a seventy-eight-ball fistfight with Luc Benkenstein. Olly Hannon-Dalby, on the other hand, contributed three wickets in nine balls to complete his innings with three for 69.

Reaching a goal of six and a half overs in order to set a record for their greatest List success Following a run chase, Warwickshire reached 97 runs in 16 overs when Yates was bowled out for 42 after playing across one from Tom Westley. He and Barnard each gave Noah Thain a six, and Barnard also pulled Ben Allison for an additional over-square leg.

Barnard scored three digits from another fifty balls, fifty from 39 balls, and one hundred and sixty balls in t4otla for his 150. Not content to stop there, he added a third maximum over long-off against the unfortunate Thain, and in 16 more overs, he and Will Rhodes completed their century partnership. 150 was a fourth six for him.

When Rhodes, on 41, skied one from Jamal Richards so high that three players converged before rookie wicketkeeper Simon Fernandes put his name to the catch, the stand had advanced to 107.

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While Burgess was soon into his stride, he swept wicket-taker Benkenstein for six in an over that ultimately ended with eighteen runs. Hamza Shaikh did not pose any threat to the scorers. To establish the century partnership for the fourth wicket, he repeated the dosage with a massive drive from Aaron Beard over long-on and another off a Ben Allison free-hit. He concluded with 59 not out from 42 balls, needing just 34 balls to reach his personal half-century.

Khushi had earlier in the day amassed Essex’s first fifty runs by hitting Barnard for four and six off consecutive balls, only to be bowled by one that tucked back and dropped to him.

When a slower delivery beat Tom Westley and he was bowled out, Barnard got his second. After hanging around for 14 overs, Das was bowled when he attempted to swing Rhodes over midwicket for only his third four in his 35 balls off 52 balls.

After reaching his fifty-score from sixty balls, Browne celebrated with an unusual four-ball reverse sweep. Once he picked out midwicket halfway back to the boundary to give Rhodes a second wicket, he was finally fourth man out with the score at 199.

Among the young guns that took control in the middle, Benkenstein unleashed sixes over extra cover and long-off, but Allison was especially potent over extra cover, where most of his seven fours came from.

When Benkenstein wafted at Hannon-Dalby with 44 from 27 balls, he didn’t wait for the umpire; instead, he turned on his heels and left. With Thain and Allison fading in the deep, it was the first of the Warwickshire speed bowler’s rapid treble.