MATCH PREVIEW: Lancashire Lightning vs Durham
Lancashire are back on the winning trail, their 35-run win over Northamptonshire last night making it back-to-back victories.
Lancashire Lightning v Durham
Vitality Blast, North Group
Sunday June 18, 2023, 2.30pm
Emirates Old Trafford
Five wins from nine games, and we now sit fourth in the table on 10 points.
The North Group is a log-jam at present, with only three points separating leaders Birmingham Bears on 12 points from Durham, our opponents tomorrow in fifth on nine. Even Worcestershire in sixth - eight points from seven games - are right in the mix having played one fewer fixture than every other team in the group.
As Steven Croft crashed a stunning century to underpin the win at Wantage Road, Durham were playing out a tie with Derbyshire as both teams finished on 178.
Durham were bowled out for 178 before Derbyshire responded with 178-5.
Squad News:
Tom Bailey and Josh Bohannon have been added to an otherwise unchanged squad from Friday evening.
Liam Livingstone (c), Tom Aspinwall, Tom Bailey, George Bell, Jack Blatherwick, Josh Bohannon, Jos Buttler, Steven Croft, Colin De Grandhomme, Tom Hartley, Rob Jones, Daryl Mitchell, Matt Parkinson, Phil Salt, Dane Vilas, Luke Wells, Luke Wood
Opposition:
Durham are firmly in the mix for the quarter-finals and have married encouraging form in the Blast with excellent form in the LV= Insurance County Championship.
They are top of the latter competition - Division Two - with four wins from seven games and are on course for promotion.
Captained by Scott Borthwick in red ball cricket, England fringe Test opener Alex Lees has taken over the limited overs captaincy, a job he held with Yorkshire before moving to the North East in 2018.
They have signed overseas all-rounders Wayne Parnell from South Africa and Ashton Turner from Australia for this competition, the latter in his second season with the county. He actually captained them in T20s last year.
Former Kent wicketkeeper-batter Ollie Robinson is their leading run-scorer with 299 runs, including three fifties. Leg-spinner Nathan Sowter has 18 wickets.
Netherlands all-rounder Bas de Leede is currently unavailable to them because of international duty at the ICC World Cup Qualifiers event in Zimbabwe.
Opposing player to watch:
Australian-born leg-spinner Nathan Sowter has settled in at Durham like a glove.
Sowter was released by Middlesex last season and, having spent time on loan at Durham last season, signed a one-year contract with his second county.
Signed to play all formats, he hasn’t yet featured in the Championship, but the 30-year-old’s impact on T20 cricket has been significant.
His tally of 18 wickets is currently the second best haul in the Blast and the best by a spinner. That includes a best of 5-15 in the opening night win over Northamptonshire last month and two further four-wicket hauls.
Previous meeting:
Lancashire were beaten by six wickets by Durham at the Seat Unique Riverside on June 2, the third of four successive away defeats in the North Group.
The Lightning, having elected to bat, could only post 152-9, including 34 for Steven Croft and 31 for Daryl Mitchell. A quartet of Durham bowlers, led by leg-spinner Nathan Sowter’s 2-18 from four overs, took two wickets.
Lancashire were hurt by only scoring 17 runs in the last 4.1 overs of the innings, losing five wickets.
And Durham made them pay, easing to their target for the loss of four wickets with 10 balls remaining. Lancashire Academy product Michael Jones, the Ormskirk-born Scottish international, top-scored with 43 off 33 balls from number three. Liam Livingstone claimed two wickets.
What they said:
Hundred hero Steven Croft believes Lancashire are starting to click in this season’s Vitality Blast.
Croft’s brilliant 101 against Northamptonshire last night was his first in a sensational 235-game and counting T20 career. But, still, personal milestones are secondary to the 38-year-old. Results are what matter for the Blackpool-born star who bleeds Red Rose.
And with five wins from nine games, including two on the bounce, the all-rounder believes the Lightning have regained momentum at just the right time.
He said: “We’re definitely going in the right direction and playing the sort of cricket that we want to.
“On paper, we’re a very strong side. But we probably haven’t played together as a unit all that much. Every game, we’re getting some good partnerships formed with bat and ball and people are knowing where to go in the field.
“Hopefully we can get some momentum going into - hopefully - the quarter-finals.”
On his century - his 21st in senior cricket across all formats - he said: “Nearly 240 games!
“I’ve got to 94 before, and I’ve jibbed it a couple of times there. So it’s delightful to get it after such a long time and even more so to be able to contribute to a win.
“To put on 140 with Daryl (Mitchell) was a special partnership.
“To put on a partnership like that, to get a hundred and a win away from home, it’s a special moment. It’s nice to get those three figures and the first one out of the way.”
On his celebration, he smiled: “I didn’t jump too high with a stiff leg. But it’s something which will always stick with me.”
How’s Stat:
Liam Livingstone needs two wickets to reach 50 for Lancashire in T20 cricket and become only the second player behind Croft to score 2,000+ runs and take 50 wickets for the county.
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