Lancashire Lightning | Five Unforgettable T20 Moments

Hat-tricks, record-breaking partnerships, final ball sixes, - Leicestershire’s T20 meetings with Lancashire Lightning seem to always produce a bolt from the blue. Let’s take a look back at some of the most dramatic moments…

5-STAR JIM | Old Trafford, 15 June 2008:

First up, a trip back to 2008, where Jim Allenby made history by becoming the first player to take four wickets in four balls in T20 cricket.

Bowling first at Old Trafford, Lancashire got off to a flyer before Allenby checked their progress by bowling South Africa star, Faf du Plessis with the score on 89/2.

Then came the history-making over, as the English-qualified Australian had Kyle Hogg caught at deep midwicket, Steven Croft dismissed driving to long off, and Dominic Cork stumped, before he flattened Sajid Mahmood's middle and leg stumps with a terrific yorker.

It was Leicestershire’s second ever T20 hat-trick “ a feat no Fox has been able to replicate since. Allenby ended with figures of 5/21, the fifth best for the Club in T20s.

MO MADNESS | Old Trafford, 3 August 2018:

A savage innings of 86 not out from only 32 balls by Afghanistan all-rounder Mohammad Nabi helped secure a breathtaking five-wicket victory for the Foxes at Old Trafford in 2018.

Coming to the crease with the side precariously placed on 92/5 in the 11th over and still needing another 99 runs to win the game, Nabi tore the Lancashire attack apart, hitting eight sixes and four fours in a sensational display of power-hitting.

The overseas star cleared the boundary ropes by over thirty yards in some instances, as he obliterated all kinds of Club records. His 86* remains the highest knock by a number seven for the Foxes, as well as Leicestershire’s highest individual total against Lancashire “ while his unbroken 102 with Ateeq Javid is a Foxes record for the sixth wicket.

RECORD TOTAL | Grace Road, 15 July 2016

Next up, Leicestershire’s highest ever total against Lancs, set in the summer of 2016 thanks to the brutal striking by Mark Pettini and Cameron Delport.

The pair put on a lightning quick 140 in 12 overs together to help the Foxes post 207/3 “ with captain Pettini hitting 76 from 51 deliveries (5x4, 4x6), and Delport smashing a 36-ball 68 (2x4, 6x6).

Their alliance became Leicestershire’s best for the second-wicket and the Foxes’ best T20 score on home soil, although both records have since been surpassed.

ACKERS OWNS AIGBURTH | Aigburth, 9 July 2017

A final-ball six is always a fitting way to win any match, none more so than on your T20 Blast debut. Well, that’s exactly what Colin Ackermann delivered to get the Foxes over the line in Liverpool seven years ago.

A star-studded home lineup, featuring Jos Buttler and Liam Livingstone, set Leicestershire 174 to win at Aigburth’s outground home. It looked an imposing total to most, but not to Ackermann, who showed his typical calmness to calculate exactly how he’d chase it down.

With two needed off the final ball, the South African-born all-rounder whacked Kyle Jarvis for six to clutch the points and end his debut unbeaten on a match-winning on 62* (41b). He went on to do alright.

DREAM DEBUT | Old Trafford, 13 June 2014

Talking of making an instant impact, Richard Jones’ 5/34 on Foxes debut in 2014 was a pretty special way to announce his arrival.

Joining on loan from Warwickshire earlier in the day, Jones headed straight to Old Trafford, where he picked up his T20-best figures in a narrow nine-run defeat.

Jones claimed the scalps of Ashwell Prince, Karl Brown and future Fox Paul Horton, before he was on a hat-trick following the dismissals of Steven Croft and Jos Buttler in successive balls.

It was to be Jones’ only T20 appearance before being recalled by the Bears, although he did return two years later for two further Blast appearances in Leicestershire colours.

Could a loan star pick up a five-fer on Friday? Will there be final-ball drama or our first hat-trick since 2008? See if lightning strikes twice when Lancashire roll into town as part of our double-header this Friday. Secure your tickets HERE.