Livingstone fires Lancashire Lightning to victory over Durham
Lancashire ended a three-game losing streak as Liam Livingstone brilliantly dismantled a 129-target in a rain-reduced, 10-overs per side Vitality Blast clash with fellow strugglers Durham at Banks Homes Riverside.
The Lightning’s quarter-final hopes were boosted by a second win in six games - this by seven wickets with five balls remaining - while Durham’s fourth defeat in six means they are joined on eight points by a Red Rose team who remain bottom of the North Group.
Livingstone’s second successive Blast half-century - 85 not out off 31 balls with eight sixes - saw him hit four successive sixes off Kasey Aldridge’s seam late in a simply sensational innings.
Durham’s 128 for two saw openers Graham Clark and Alex Lees impress for 49 not out off 29 balls and 42 off 24 respectively. England limited overs pacer Luke Wood returned one for 16 from two overs for Lightning, while Livingstone also struck.
After a near two-hour delay through to 8.25pm, Lees pulled and muscled the contest’s first two balls from the spin of Tom Hartley for four and took four boundaries in all off the opening over.
Clark pulled Tom Aspinwall’s for six as Durham took 33 from the three-over powerplay.
Clark twice drove Livingstone’s spin through the covers for fourth en-route to 51 without loss in the fifth over, and the openers powered on.
This was the same pitch used for Durham’s defeat against Northamptonshire here on Saturday, and pace-off was the tactic from both teams.
When Livingstone bowled an attacking Lees, Durham had 94 in the eighth over. But Clark brilliantly scooped Aspinwall for a boundary as the hosts ended well, despite the opener just falling short of 50.
While Keaton Jennings miscued to mid-off against Callum Parkinson four balls into Lancashire’s chase, Livingstone was quickly into his stride by pulling Matthew Potts for six as 19 came off the second over - 26 for one.
And, on the back of scores of 44 and 81 in his last two matches - both defeats against Yorkshire and Glamorgan, he was incredible here.
He took three successive boundaries off Bolton-born Parkinson’s left-arm spin as the score reached 40 for one after three.
Nathan Sowter bowled Ben McDermott just outside the powerplay, bringing Michael Jones to the crease against his former county.
Livingstone was dropped in the deep on 36 before Jones hoisted Sowter over long-off for six.
The same batter fell caught at long-on for 27 off 16 balls against Aldridge shortly afterwards before Livingstone took him apart late in the eighth over to take the score to 111 for three and all but settle the game.
He reached a 23-ball fifty en-route and also broke the record for most sixes by a Lancashire batter in T20 history (163), previously held by his delighted coach Steven Croft.
War of the Roses - Friday 10 July
Cricket's biggest rivalry is back and is a night not to be missed. This years clash is even bigger than ever with the first Roses T20 double header taking place, and over 14,000 tickets have already been sold!
Buy today to avoid missing out.
;