ALEX Gidman says Worcestershire will take “huge confidence” from their innings victory over Leicestershire in Specsavers County Championship Division Two as they make the switch to List A cricket for the next month.

Rapids launch their Royal London One-Day Cup campaign on Wednesday when they take on Lancashire Lightning at Emirates Old Trafford (11am).

Worcestershire will bid for a hat-trick after topping the North Group in impressive style for the past two seasons to secure money-spinning home semi-finals with Surrey and Kent respectively which they lost.

They combined red and white-ball cricket in their pre-season programme to try to ensure they will be in the best possible shape for both formats.

First-team coach Gidman said: “Although (facing) Lancashire is a different format (to the Championship) naturally the lads will be pretty excited, pretty confident and just looking forward to getting that competition under way.

“It’s been a strange pre-season in the sense of having to plan for one game of red-ball cricket and then a competition that is going to start and finish within a month (in the one-day cup).

“It’s going to take a bit of adjusting but the lads will be fine.

“They’ve done it now for years but we will get a huge amount of confidence from the win at Leicester so will be looking forward to it.”

Hamish Rutherford will play the first of the five one-day cup matches he has been signed up for by Worcestershire after his debut century against Leicestershire.

Their Championship Division Two rivals Lancashire started the four-day season with a seven-wicket win at Middlesex.

Rob Jones scored 122 and Haseeb Hameed 117 as Lancashire managed 427 in their first innings while bowling out the Lord's hosts for 265 and 200.

Seamer Tom Bailey took 5-67 and Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell claimed a career-best 5-40.