There cannot have been many successful run chases in the history of the Watford Observer Fourteen14 Shield that started and ended with a six, less so with both shots being struck by members of the same family. But that was what happened on Tuesday as Watford Haidery capitalised on a blistering early onslaught to secure their place in Wednesday’s final against Abbots Langley with a five-wicket victory over West Herts A.

The Stags would have been justifiably optimistic of reaching their first final since 2016 at the halfway stage after opener Simon Walker carried his bat for a superb unbeaten 89 to help his side post a sizeable 164-3 off their 14, eight-ball overs at Kings Langley’s ground.

Haidery had no choice but to start their reply on the front foot, but the way openers Ali Nawaz and particularly Tanveer Hussain went after the West Herts bowlers went beyond simply being positive.

The tone was set from the very first ball as Tanveer launched 14-year-old spinner Arjun Patel for six. He repeated the trick six deliveries later, pulling the teenager through square and over the clubhouse roof before dispatching the final ball of the over for four to make the score 20-0

If West Herts were hoping they had been on the receiving end of one disappointing over, they suffered a rude awakening as Matt Smith saw his first eight deliveries cost 24 runs, including another two sixes from Tanveer as the barrage continued.

Haidery reached 50 off just 19 balls before Nawaz joined in the maximum-hitting fun as the score raced to 62-0 by the end of the third over.

West Herts desperately needed to end the opening partnership and Ian Gurney was to get the breakthrough in the fourth, having Tanveer caught on the boundary by Alistair Lewis as he attempted another six with the score on 67.

It was only the 14th delivery Tanveer had faced, but they yielded 42 runs and put his side well ahead of the chase. It was an opportunity they were not to pass up, although they did lose two wickets in the next two overs as Iftihar Shah (6) perished before Nawaz saw his good innings come to an end at 35 when he became Gurney’s (2-38) second victim.

The Stags had halted the early onslaught, but such was the position Haidery were in new batsmen Toqeer Hussain, who is Tanveer’s son, and Kamber Hussain were able to bat without taking many risks as they kept the scoreboard ticking over with regularity.

The pair added 69 for the third wicket before Kamber fell for 27 off the second ball of the 13th over. New batsman Ali Asghar Shah (1) was also to be run out before the end, but Toqeer clinched the victory in style, cracking the first delivery of the final over for his third six to finish unbeaten on 41 and clinch a five-wicket win with seven balls to spare.

Such a relatively comfortable victory did not look likely during the first innings when it was Haidery who were increasingly left scratching their heads at how to stem the tide of runs.

Having been put into bat, Stags openers Walker and Alistair Lewis started steadily before upping the ante in the fifth over when Reza Shah’s eight deliveries cost 21 runs as the score moved to 51-0.

The opening partnership was broken off the first ball of the seventh over when Lewis (9), who had not seen much of the strike, fell to Kaami’s opening delivery.

Walker continued his progress though, reaching his half-century from the first ball of the eighth before Kaami (2-45) enjoyed more success in the next over when he claimed the wicket of Smith (12).

Will Jones (7) was to be dismissed by Kamber (1-31) in the 10th to make the score 116-3 as it increasingly became a matter of how many runs West Herts would get and whether Walker could reach three figures.

Although the opener attacked where possible, scoring his second six in the 12th over, the majority of the last four overs were fielded by skipper Richard Mason, who finished unbeaten on 15 as the Stags closed on 164-3.

That looked a good total, but it was not to prove enough as Haidery secured their first final appearance since 2011 and just a third time in the competition’s history.

The match will be played at West Herts’ Park Avenue ground and play is due to start at 6.15pm.