Fabian Cowdrey celebrated his Yorkshire Bank 40 debut with a spectacular 30-ball half-century in the 39-run win over Worcestershire at New Road on Sunday.

The 20-year-old all-rounder followed up his impressive t20 knock of 50 against Surrey at the Kia Oval last month by hitting an unbeaten 52. His innings included five fours and two sixes – the second of which came off the last ball.

For fans of a certain vintage, the names of Cowdrey and D’Oliveira on the same scorecard would have evoked memories of two of England’s finest players (Colin and Basil), with Fabian and Brett the respective third generations of the famous cricketing families.

Cowdrey said: “The coach (Jimmy Adams) told me I was in the squad a couple of days before. I thought that might mean I would be carrying the drinks but he then said I was playing the night before.

“It was brilliant. I was happy to get my chance and do a job for the side. The instruction when I went in was to give Sam (Northeast) the strike, which seemed the best policy.

“There were eight overs left, the wicket was still a bit two-paced but the ball came onto the bat pretty nicely. I got to 46 with one ball left and so wanted to get a four or a six off the last ball to get to 50. It was great to see it (the ball) fly over mid-wicket.

“I was a little bit nervous when I went in but the reception from the crowd when I got to 50 was fantastic.”