WORCESTERSHIRE Rapids skipper Daryl Mitchell admits he relishes opening the batting in the NatWest T20 Blast after the three-run win over North Group leaders Durham Jets at the Emirates ICG.

Mitchell was Rapids' leading scorer in the competition last season and is again the top run-getter to date in 2015 with 204 from five innings.

He scored his second half-century of the current campaign with 56 off 49 balls last night and also weighed in with the wickets of Calum MacLeod and Paul Collingwood from successive balls.

The 31-year-old went to the top of the order last summer after Moeen Ali's elevation into the England side.

Mitchell said: “It would have been nice to get a hat-trick. I’ve not had one of those. But it’s most important to get the win.

“I’ve really enjoyed opening the batting. It’s a role that I really enjoy and it’s one that I didn’t do previously (in T20 cricket) with Vikram Solanki and Moeen playing regularly.

"I always batted down the order. It was nice to get out there with the new ball and do something.

"I didn’t particularly play well but I anchored the innings to enable us to get a score."

Rapids totalled 159-5 with Tom Kohler-Cadmore making a competition-best 53 not out and then restricted Jets to 156-7 with Saeed Ajmal returning 3-16.

Mitchell said: “The most important thing was getting the two points and trying to force our way up the division.

"We got a decent score, perhaps just shy of par.

"We started really poorly (in the field). We’ve set our standards higher than that in the past and didn’t take control of the ball.

"Credit to the lads to show some spirit to fight back, helped by a little bit of magic from Ajmal.

"The wizard is back and that was a fantastic spell from him.

“You’re never out of it, you have to keep fighting and putting the ball in the right areas. We kept getting the wickets we needed."

Bowling coach Matt Mason said: "It was a fantastic win. We showed a lot of character.

"It was a tough pitch to bat on. We found scoring boundaries really hard. It's a big ground and hitting fours and sixes was difficult.

"We got ourselves a competitive total. We weren't sure if it was the total we were after, if it was a par score or not, and after the first three overs of their batting, we thought we were in a bit of trouble.

"But what a fightback and Saeed Ajmal was brilliant. As long as you field well and keep believing, you can win."