WORCESTERSHIRE Rapids captain Jake Libby said his side were "still in it," following a defeat to Glamorgan.
Rapids faced a heart-breaking defeat in Cardiff on Sunday, losing by just two wickets to Glamorgan on the final ball of the match.
It leaves the Rapids with a tough road ahead if they hope to defend their Metro Bank One Day Cup title.
Posting a competitive 278-9 at the halfway stage, captain Jake Libby recorded an incredible fourth successive hundred in the competition, producing a sublime 105 after digging his team out of trouble at 26-3.
But the hosts stayed in the fight and squeezed the last ball away for four to snatch a two-wicket win.
Reflecting on the one that he felt got away, Libby said: “There are some emotional boys up there. It is obviously very disappointing one to lose in a close one like that. You can pick apart and the game and find a run here or there, but we came up short in what was a really good game of cricket.
“They played really well at the end and it just wasn’t our day today.
“We will be disappointed not to defend that. We had a few players going off the pitch that forced us to change the plans a little bit at the end but I backed the guys at the back end that did finish it off and look on a different day, it goes our way.
“The balls that they hit seemed to hit the gaps, and if it doesn’t then who knows, but that is just the nature of bowling at the death, I guess.
“It’s not necessarily the death period there where we’ve lost this game, I think we were probably poor with the ball if we are being honest through the middle period.
"I think we let them back into it after a really strong first 20 overs with the ball and that’s probably more where we lost it.”
The defeat does not put an end to the Rapids’ title defence but they need to beat Durham by a significant margin and hope other results go their way if they are to squeeze out of Group B in third place on Tuesday.
After beating Essex on Sunday, the northern outfit will provide a stern test for the 2025 tournament winners, who are boosted by the recent return to action by Ben Stokes.
Libby said: “Durham are obviously a very strong outfit and I don’t know the exact maths yet, but we’re going to have to win by a good margin by the sounds of it.
“We’ve won three from three at New Road. I guess anything’s possible there and the boys will be giving it their all and we’ll dust ourselves down after today and hopefully finish with a really positive result.”
“It’s felt like a lot of games to win this year to qualify, but we’re still in it.
“It’s a chance back at home in front of our fans who have been fantastic for us this season and we play really good cricket at New Road.
“We kind of know how to play there so hopefully it’s just a fantastic day for us and we can put on another good show and try and finish with a really positive performance and ultimately we are still in with a chance of qualifying into the next stages.”
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