Lightning strike in rain-affected clash
Fri 10 Jun 2016
NatWest T20 Blast Matchday 5: Lancashire Lightning v Leicestershire Foxes
Jordan Clark was outstanding with bat and ball as Lancashire Lightning won a heavily rain-affected NatWest T20 Blast game at Emirates Old Trafford by nine wickets on the Duckworth-Lewis method.
In a match initially reduced to 14 overs per side, Mark Cosgrove played a gem of an innings in scoring 66 not out off 47 balls, including eight boundaries, as Leicestershire Foxes posted 131-3.
Clark returned figures of 1-15 from three overs and then opened the batting for Lightning, who reached 11-0 after 1.2 overs when more precipitation arrived.
The hosts were set a revised target of 74 off 7 overs and they chased it down with five balls to spare as Clark (31 not out, 12 balls) and England international Jos Buttler (20 not out, 9 balls) were in blistering form.
Leicestershire Foxes showed one change to the side that beat Durham Jets last Saturday. Cameron Delport came in for debut in place of the injured Niall O’Brien on a night where current Leicestershire batsman Paul Horton was celebrating his Lancashire career with a special event in the Point.
The team lost the toss for a fourth time in five NatWest T20 Blast matches and it was to prove a big moment.
In all truth, it was difficult to execute any of the three disciplines on a miserable Manchester evening but when Duckworth-Lewis enters the equation, the side batting second has the benefit of knowing exactly how many runs are required.
The Foxes, on the other hand, had to work out what a good 14-over score would be when the match got underway 75 minutes later than scheduled.
Openers Pettini and Cosgrove quickly came to terms with the conditions, and a skilful opening stand of 63 off 41 balls gave the Foxes a good platform.
Pettini found the fence with the last two balls of the first over from Neil Wagner and when Clark offered what proved to be rare width in his opening over, Cosgrove hit a four through the off-side.
A total of 19 came from the third offering as the left-hander hit three boundaries in the space of four deliveries courtesy of a pull, a lofted drive over extra and a tickle off the hips while Pettini drove delightfully through the covers to collect his third four.
Clark then bowled a tidy over but the Foxes nevertheless progressed to 39-0 off their reduced powerplay.
Lancashire immediately turned to their slow bowlers and Pettini drove Arron Lilley to the fence before 13 came off Stephen Parry’s first over, including a fifth boundary for Cosgrove as he struck through the on-side. The batsman had previously offered a half-chance as Steven Croft just failed to cling on after covering an awful lot of ground running in from long-off.
The first wicket fell off the penultimate ball of the seventh over, Pettini top edging an improvised sweep off Lilley into his helmet and seeing the ball land in the hands of a sprawling Buttler.
Akmal immediately got off the mark with a single as the score reached 64-1 at halfway and the Pakistan international went on to strike the first maximum of the game towards the former Old Trafford Lodge in the next over.
Cosgrove collected seven runs in the next over from George Edwards, although one of his three braces came as a result of Karl Brown putting one down in the deep.
Overseas star Akmal (17, 11b), who also had a reprieve when Wagner dropped him at deep mid-wicket, pulled Croft for four before the off-spinner gained revenge as the batsman played the next delivery on to his wicket.
A three from Cosgrove took him to a 40-ball half-century at the end of the 11th over (5x4) and O’Brien struck two successive fours behind square on the leg-side as the score progressed to 109-2 with twelve balls to go.
O’Brien (12, 9b) holed out as only a single came from the first five balls of Clark’s final over but Delport (6*, 3b) hit a flat six back over the all-rounder’s head before Cosgrove struck three fours in the final over as Lancashire were originally set 132 to win.
Lightning received only eight balls before another seven overs were wiped off, meaning the hosts required a further 63 off 34 balls.
Clark signalled his intent by hitting the first ball after the restart for a maximum before Neil Dexter bowled a terrific over that cost just six runs.
That gave the Foxes some hope with 47 now required from 24 deliveries but momentum was gained as 13 came off the next six deliveries, including a four from the first and last ball from Alviro Peterson and Clark respectively.
Peterson picked up a two at the start of the fifth over before falling for 23, expertly caught by Tom Wells at backward point off O’Brien.
Lancashire still needed two runs a ball at that stage but dangerman Buttler made an immediate impact.
The ‘keeper struck his first two balls for four down to third man and over cover respectively, and a six off the third legitimate ball of the penultimate over was another blow for the Foxes.
All told, 20 came off the sixth over as Clark also cleared the ropes, and another maximum at the start of the seventh over finished the game.
The Foxes return to action in the Royal London One-Day Cup at Northants Steelbacks on Sunday (11am start) and the next NatWest T20 Blast encounter is a home match under the floodlights against Worcestershire Rapids a week today (6.30pm start).
Bowling figures for Leicestershire: McKay 2-0-28-0, Raine 1.1-0-19-0, Dexter 1-0-6-0, Delport 1-0-13-0, O’Brien 1-0-11-1.
