The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry bowled and batted their way to victory in a charity cricket match aimed at raising awareness about the illegal wildlife trade.

The brothers joined forces with ex-England batsman Kevin Pietersen, former England fast-bowler Devon Malcolm and other sportsmen when they took on a team from the Royal Household yesterday.

The Duke of Edinburgh is believed to be the Royal family's keenest cricket fan, and a talented player in his younger days, but his grandsons were a chip off the old block during the match.

Harry was among the wicket takers and his elder brother William also had a spell bowling as they beat the Queen's staff with one ball to spare in the 20/20 overs match.

The private event was staged in summer sunshine at Windsor Home Park in support of a campaign by the organisation United for Wildlife, formed by the Duke, which is using the power of sport to raise awareness about the illegal trade in animal parts. It is hoped the #WhoseSideAreYouOn initiative will gather pace on social networks to raise the profile of the issue.

Also playing on the brothers' team was former Pakistani cricketer Azhar Mahmoud and retired England wicket keeper Paul Nixon.