Our mindsets will be ready and we will be hungry - Nixon

The Foxes fourth round Royal London One-Day Cup game ended in dramatic fashion at the FCG as the Derbyshire Falcons won the game after hitting two runs from the final ball to reach the revised 266 after the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method took full effect.

Leicestershire Foxes set Derbyshire Falcons an initial target of 313 to win, but after a rain-interrupted opening to the chase, the DLS method came into play, meaning that the visitors needed 266 from 39 overs.

The match was won from the final ball as Leus du Plooy earned the final two runs after playing the shot down to mid-on and racing up and down the wicket alongside Matthew Critchley.

With the result snatched away from them at the death, Leicestershire CCC Head Coach Paul Nixon admitted that it was a hard result to take.

He said: “It is disappointing after coming off such a fantastic win against Worcestershire. We just didn’t execute our skills enough with the bat – Colin Ackermann had a fantastic innings again with back-to-back hundreds, so we have to give Ackers credit for that, he played beautifully.

“We just needed meaningful partnerships with him. We just did not quite keep those rolling on and kept losing wickets consistently.”

Nixon was frustrated that DLS had such an effect after the Foxes put a score of over 300 on the board for a second game in succession.

“I actually feel that if they [Derbyshire Falcons] played their ‘A’ game, they would have won the game two or three overs out,” said Nixon. “I felt that the Duckworth-Lewis helped them a lot.

The shorter the game, the harder it is to take wickets because they have more of a free rationale to go and score positively, because they have more wickets behind them.”

Colin Ackermann played a vital part in the Foxes’ innings once again, hitting his second List A century in as many games, and Nixon is pleased to see him hitting a bit of form: “Ackers is playing beautifully,” he said.

“He is a high-class player that probably did not have the best year last year. There were one or two little technical issues that have been ironed out. He has come back in a really good place; physically, mentally and technically.

“We have just got to keep emphasising those things that good players do when they are playing well and hopefully it grabs the rest of the guys by the scruff of the neck and drags them with it.”

The Foxes now have two big games to prepare for as they face Notts Outlaws and Lancashire Lightning on Friday 26 and Sunday 28 April respectively, and will be needing victories to stay within a shout of progressing through to the knockout phase of the Royal London One-Day Cup.

Nixon said: “We know that there are going to be some good pitches, especially Trent Bridge. It is one of the fastest outfields in the country, the highest scores from around the world are scored at Notts consistently in white ball cricket.

“We know that there is a very good chance of a short boundary at one end so we have got to be smart with our options and we have got to be really committed. If it takes you a few balls to get in, it doesn’t matter because you will make up for it down the line. Our mindsets will be ready and we will be hungry.”

Leicestershire Foxes (from 13): Horton (capt), Ackermann, Cosgrove, Davis, Dearden, Griffiths, Hill (wk), Klein, Lilley, Mike, Parkinson, Taylor, Wright.

*To watch the full interview with Paul, click HERE.