County Championship: Pieter Malan & Dom Sibley share 220-run stand for Warwickshire at Worcester

Pieter Malan's previous highest score in eight Championship innings for Warwickshire was 32, also against Worcestershire: at Edgbaston in May

South African Test batsman Pieter Malan and England opener Dom Sibley shared a 220-run second-wicket stand as Warwickshire dominated day one of the Pears-Bears derby with Worcestershire.

Malan made 141, his first century outside Africa - and his maiden ton for the Bears - after losing Rob Yates to the fifth ball of the day.

Out-of-form Sibley weighed in with a timely season's best 80 of 189 balls.

But the Pears hit back to bag three wickets before rain came at 245-4.

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After getting rid of Malan and Sibley (80), teenage debutant Josh Baker - one of three Pears spinners - then got another.

The 18-year-old slow left-armer had England Lions batter Sam Hain leg before wicket playing back to an arm ball.

But, although rain arrived to trim off the last 19 overs, it was Malan's day after a disappointing time since he his Covid-protocol delayed arrival in England in late April.

Although he averaged over 40 in all formats of the game, he had previously made just 121 runs in eight previous Championship innings.

But he was rarely troubled in completing a 151-ball hundred - his 35th in first-class cricket - to help the Bears keep their Group One top two hopes very much alive.

That was after Warwickshire captain Will Rhodes opted to bat on the same pitch used for Worcestershire's T20 Blast win over the Bears on Friday night.

Worcestershire spinner Josh Baker:

"I got told yesterday by Joe Leach that I was playing. I made sure I went to bed early last night but I didn't get that much sleep - about six hours - but it was good nerves!

"It was nice to have an early bowl. It filled me with confidence. I was glad that I landed all of the first over on the strip, not full-bungers. I was really happy with how it came out.

"I was just trying to do my job, do the basics well, and just enjoy it really. I didn't really feel out of my depth which is a good thing, I guess."

Warwickshire centurion Pieter Malan:

"I was told it's a bit of a derby game and it's always nice to contribute in games like that. You need a bit of luck with batting. You need a few things to go your way.

"If you do the right things enough times, the game will pay you back over a period of time. I sort of tried to believe in that and it paid off.

"It was disappointing firstly myself getting out and then losing a few more wickets. But we are in a good position to potentially score another 150 runs or so and then put them under pressure."