Northamptonshire Steelbacks welcome Warwickshire Bears to the cinch County Ground for the final game of the 2026 Vitality Blast group stages.
The Steelbacks have already guaranteed a home quarter-final, but it would be an added bonus if they were able to take momentum into the fixture, which is taking place on Wednesday against a TBC opponent.
Last time out against the Bears, Chris Lynn hit his first century back in Northamptonshire colours as the Steelbacks chased down over 200 at Edgbaston.
The Bears have had a difficult campaign, and currently sit fifth in the group on 20 points. Somerset’s win last night has meant that the Bears are out of the competition already, which ends their five year streak of making the quarter-finals.
Match information:
Gates open at 12:30pm tomorrow, with play set to start at 2:30pm. Tickets are still available for this fixture and can be bought here or on the gate when you arrive.
With warm weather expected, spectators are advised to take care in the sun and ensure they stay hydrated throughout the fixture. Paramedics will be on-site and on hand to assist anyone who has any issues.
The fixture will be livestream on the Steelbacks TV YouTube channel, and you can follow the action with live match updates across our social media channels.
Concessions:
Tempeo Foundation FanZone: Rocky Gelato, Burger Van
Standing area: Mem Saab, Nuts For Your Coffee & Hey Spud
Water is available at all external bars at the ground for £1.
From 12:30pm until 1:30pm, you can enjoy our Carlsberg Happy Hour, with Carlsberg available for just £3.50 a pint.
The Tempeo Foundation FanZone will be open, with plenty of things to do for our younger fans. We’ll have a bouncy castle, a speed tunnel, face painting and plenty of food and drink options. The FanZone is located behind the Briggs & Forrester stand.
Steelbacks squad to face Warwickshire Bears:
David Willey (c), George Bartlett, Calvin Harrison, Louis Kimber, Chris Lynn, Lewis McManus (wk), Nathan McSweeney, Gus Miller, Luke Procter, James Sales, Ben Sanderson, George Scrimshaw, Ricardo Vasconcelos, Raphy Weatherall, Saif Zaib
We spoke to Head Coach Darren Lehmann after the Somerset game to discuss the defeat, a career-best for Lewis McManus and taking momentum into the quarter-final.
Warwickshire Bears
Previewed by Brian Halford, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
Captain: Ed Barnard
Overseas players: Usman Tariq (Pakistan, all), Beau Webster (Australia, all)
Finals Day appearances: Four (2002, 2014, 2015, 2017)
Titles: One (2014)
2025 finish: Quarter-finals
2025 leading run-scorer: Alex Davies (464)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Hasan Ali (25)
Key winter moves: Pakistan off-spinner Usman Tariq is the big addition to a bowling attack which has lost its spin spearhead of recent years, Danny Briggs. Beau Webster’s all-round excellence and big-match temperament will be a big asset.
The big question: The same question that has been on the minds of the Bears’ supporters for five years? Can they fix that quarter-final jinx? Much work is required to even get to that stage, of course, but if they do, a sequence of five successive quarter-final exits must be broken.
Wildcard watch: Ethan Bamber – T20 games are decided by cricketers who make things happen and Bamber is very much in that category. A wicket-taker with the ball and capable of blistering cameos with the bat.
Final thought: Frustration is growing around Edgbaston at Warwickshire’s succession of Blast near-misses – five quarter-final defeats on the bounce. The stadium is a hugely popular host venue for Finals Day… for the hosts to again attend their own party is long overdue.