Adam Finch is looking forward to next year after making big strides as a bowler in 2023.

The pace bowler missed the end of the season through injury but topped the Worcestershire bowling averages - of players who formed a regular part of the attack - with 28 wickets at 25.71.

Finch returned the first two five-fors of his career and had the best strike rate with a wicket every 37.4 deliveries.

His final appearance of the season saw him play a key role with seven wickets in the crucial County Championship win over Gloucestershire at Cheltenham before being sidelined with a back injury.

But Finch has been making good progress with his rehab and hoping to return to Adelaide after Christmas to play grade cricket with Sturt CC for a second successive winter.

Finch said: “I was really frustrated to not be able to finish the season on the pitch but overall really pleased with how the year has gone.

“It is one I can hopefully learn from and build upon and try and improve and keep figuring out ways to try and make an impact for the team. Fond memories of this year.

“I think my game awareness has improved in terms of understanding situations, maybe just as a product of having been in a couple of those situations before.

“I also like to think my control and accuracy, my lines and length, were better this year than they have been previously.

“I worked a lot on hitting the seam and creating natural movement, and I think that was something this year I gained a bit more from.

“Really grateful for the experiences I had this summer and nice to see the things I worked on with Alan Richardson and Richard Jones coming to fruition.”

Finch has been making good progress after being laid low after the win at Cheltenham.

He said he is “getting into a good place to have a nice patch of strengthening and conditioning stuff before I go away to Adelaide with Sturt CC, and then have a really good pre-season ready to hit next season hard again”.