Kotak and Bell lay the platform for brutal assault from Donald

Wardens’ skipper smashed ten fours and eight sixes in a blistering knock as the hosts added 99 in the last five overs of their 50-over innings to close on 304 for three. Shrewsbury were then bowled out for 191 in the 48th over.

This outstanding display came hot on the heels of last weekend’s triumph over Kidderminster. The win-double shoots Wardens into mid-table, where a comforting 38-point buffer now separates them from the Birmingham League Premier Division drop zone with five games remaining.

The upcoming Bank Holiday weekend double-header sees Donald’s team travel to champions-elect West Bromwich Dartmouth on Saturday before visiting Walsall on Monday. A win at Gorway could confirm Wardens’ Premier Division status, while simultaneously hammering a further nail into the hosts’ coffin.

After opting to bat first on a used pitch, Wardens struggled to 26 for two before Keith Bell and Sitanshu Kotak (68) joined forces in an excellent 118-run third-wicket alliance. The Indian ace’s dismissal cleared the way for Donald’s late onslaught, which was considered by many to be the finest knock in Glasshouse Park’s 26-year history.

While Bell patiently accumulated an unbeaten 138-ball 97, Donald demolished the visiting attack, much as he had Knowle & Dorridge’s two days previously in the Carrick Travel Floodlit T20 Cup final.

Mike Barnard (3-53) was the pick of Shrewsbury’s bowlers.

After Ali Wilkinson celebrated his final match before emigrating to Malaysia with the prized early scalp of Ed Foster, Steve Leach (22), Rob Foster (32) and Tom Cox (21) all got starts without going on to the big score Shrewsbury required.

Wardens’ spinners Anthony Wilkinson (0-29), Udit Talati (1-36) and Kotak (2-29) all kept things quiet through the middle part of the innings before Ali Wilkinson returned to mop up Will Parton (35) and the tail to finish with figures of four for 42.

Wardens 2nds kept their promotion hopes alive with a narrow ten-run win at third-placed Wellington after surviving a heart-stopping encounter on a difficult pitch.

The unlikely hero was leg-spinner Tom Ballinger, whose battling 42 from number ten enabled a struggling batting line-up to post a working total of 158 after a sub-100 figure had looked likely.

Ballinger provided good support to keeper Harry Johnson, whose fine 47 was the only other substantial contribution.

Nick Whiting (3-28) made early inroads into the hosts’ batting following the resumption, and with experienced duo Mark Pidgeon and James Jordan proving every bit as effective as Wellington’s attack had earlier been, a comfortable away win seemed likely.

However, useful lower order runs from Martin Weil (23) kept the hosts’ hopes alive and it required two late wickets for veteran trundler Paul Henderson to see Wardens to an uncomfortably narrow win.