WORCESTERSHIRE Rapids suffered cruel final over defeats against both Northamptonshire Steelbacks and Leicestershire Foxes in the T20 Blast.
The Rapids lost by six runs against Northants at the County Ground before then losing by just four runs against Leicestershire at Grace Road.
And the results mean the Rapids sit seventh in the T20 Blast North Group.
Against Northants, Hayden Walsh (1-17) took the crucial wicket of Ricardo Vasconcelos (28) after he put on a 49-run first-wicket partnership with Matthew Breetzke (26).
New loan singing from Somerset, Shoaib Bashir (2-38) accounted for Breetzke soon after and then claimed the wicket of David Willey (3).
However, Northants recovered from 63-3 to reach 90-4 as Adam Finch (1-25) took the wicket of veteran Ravi Bopara (18).
The visitors failed to take any wickets from the 14th over onwards as Saif Zaib (44 not out) and Sikandar Raza (42 not out) helped the Steelbacks finish on 169-4.
And the home side made early inroads with the ball as Brett D’Oliveira (8), Ed Pollock (14) and Matthew Waite (12) all fell to leave the Rapids on 34-3.
A pair of useful knocks from Ethan Brookes (24) and Adam Hose (30) kept the Rapids in the game before Tom Taylor (9) and Nathan Smith (11) both fell with Worcestershire on 115-7.
However, a superb innings from wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick (39), which included three sixes, left the Rapids needing 11 runs from the final over to win.
Roderick was unable to produce the heroics required to guide the Rapids to an unlikely win as he eventually fell to Raphael Weatherall (1-4) on the penultimate ball with the Rapids seven runs short of victory.
And Worcestershire suffered a similarly cruel defeat against Leicestershire despite restricting the home side to 20-2 at the end of the third over as Smith (3-39) and Finch (3-43) both struck.
Home batters Louis Kimber (25) and opener Rishi Patel (48) took the Foxes to 119-5 before late knocks from Ben Cox (29) and Ben Mike (24 not out) helped Leicestershire reach 176-8.
In reply, Rapids openers D’Oliveira (32) and Waite (40) put on 70 runs for the first wicket before Waite fell with Worcestershire on 105-2 in the 13th over.
The Foxes claimed the crucial wickets of Josh Cobb (34) and Brookes (37) with the latter’s knock coming from just 16 balls as he hit four fours and two sixes.
Worcestershire needed 11 runs again from the last over but lost Taylor (1) with four balls left and failed to score a boundary from the remaining deliveries to fall five runs short of the required total.
Worcestershire continue their T20 Blast campaign against Notts Outlaws on Friday, June 14 with the game to begin at 5.30pm at New Road.
The Rapids then host Northants at New Road on Sunday, June 16 with the match to start at 2.30pm.
