Running Foxes fall short of record run chase

BLAST 4 | Yorkshire Vikings 240 for four v Leicestershire Foxes 222 for eight “ Vikings won by 18 runs

SCORECARD | Available from Cricinfo HERE

POINTS | Yorkshire Vikings 2, Leicestershire Foxes 0

REPORT | Yorkshire Vikings posted their third highest score in T20 cricket leaving the Running Foxes of a chase of 241.

Josh Inglis posted the third fastest fifty in T20 cricket for the Running Foxes, as well as a career best T20 score as the Foxes fall agonisingly short of their mammoth target.

Leicestershire Foxes travelled up to Leeds to take on Yorkshire Vikings, with the Foxes still searching for that elusive first win of the 2021 Vitality Blast.

The 14-man squad remained the same as it had all season with Head Coach Paul Nixon opting for continuity in his selection.

The news from Headingley was that our hosts won the toss and opted to bat first.

Callum Parkinson opened the bowling and restricted the opening duo of Lyth and Bairstow to just a solitary run. Colin Ackermann took the ball from the other end and continued the good start, conceding just six.

The Vikings opened up during the fifth over, with Bairstow claiming 22 (one four and three sixes) taking the Vikings over the 50-run mark.

The hosts brought their powerplay to an end, following overs of 22 and 16 respectively, finishing on 67 without loss.

The run-rate continued to accelerate as we approached the halfway point of the innings, with Lyth now the man grabbing the momentum.

Bairstow was the first of the batsmen to reach his half-century, with his sixth four coming in 28 balls, three sixes were also posted. The hosts reached their 100 in the same over.

Lyth posted his fifty in the next over, also coming in 28 balls, including four fours and four sixes. The Vikings reached the halfway point of their innings on 113 without loss.

Lyth’s total only reached 51, though, as he drove a Parkinson delivery straight to the hands of Louis Kimber at long on who took the grab to earn his first catch as a Running Fox. Lyth departed for 51(30b) and was replaced by Dawid Malan.

One brought two for the Foxes, as Ackermann claimed his first of the innings from his last over. His delivery deceived the new batsman as he stepped down the wicket to go big. Malan (6, 5b) played and missed the delivery, leaving Josh Inglis plenty of time for the stumping. The Running Foxes skipper ended with figures of 4-0-31-1.

Parkinson was next to bowl his allotted four overs, at the end of the fifteenth over with figures of 4-0-31-1 as well.

Two big wickets fell for the Vikings, firstly of Willey (44, 21b), followed by Bairstow (82, 45b) off the bowling of Naveen. Both Parkinson and Griffiths took superb catches to see the batsmen off.

Fraine and Brook began the eighteenth over for the hosts with Vikings on 190 for four.

The duo posted 51 runs between them to bring the Vikings innings to an end of 240 for four, with Fraine finishing on 2(3b), and Brook on 48(16b).

Scott Steel and Josh Inglis got the Running Foxes’ reply underway with Willey opening the bowling for the hosts.

The Running Foxes lost an early wicket in the first over, as Scott Steel 1(2b) lofted a Willey delivery high into the sky which Brook safely watched into his hands in the leg side.

Two boundaries apiece for both Josh Inglis and Arron Lilley got the scoring underway with the Foxes on 18 for one after two overs.

The Foxes nearly doubled their run total after the third over as Inglis sent Thomson over long off for the first six of the evening for Leicestershire. This was followed by Lilley’s first maximum of the evening through the leg side “ seventeen runs were recorded from the third.

The boundaries kept flowing with Inglis and Lilley posting 20 between them from the fourth, including Lilley’s second six of the evening after uppercutting Willey through the off side.

The partnership came to an end following Lockie Ferguson’s first delivery of the evening, with Lilley (24, 12b) bowled by the New Zealand pace man.

Ackermann came in and posted three successive maximums off the bowling of Lyth to claim 25 runs from the sixth over as the Foxes ended the powerplay on 81 for two.

Inglis then brought up his maiden T20 fifty for the Running Foxes with the half-century coming from 20 balls, including seven fours and two sixes. The Running Foxes ton was also brought up, alongside the half-century in the eighth over.

At the halfway mark, the Running Foxes sat on 130 for two, but the third wicket stand would soon come to an end.

Ackermann (32, 17b) was the man to go as he guided Thompson’s delivery straight to Willey just inside the circle at extra cover. Rishi Patel joined Inglis (82no, 34b) in the middle with the Foxes on 141 for three.

The Running Foxes then lost the huge wicket of Inglis for 82(37b) after an outstanding one-handed catch by Thompson on the leg side boundary rope. Lewis Hill joined Patel (4no, 8b) in the middle.

A fifth wicket fell in the next over, as Hill looked for his second boundary of the over off Willey. The Leicestershire-man claimed his first six of the evening, three balls before guiding on to the hands of Fraine for a six ball 10.

Leicestershire Foxes were 176 for six heading into the final five overs, trailing by 64.

Rishi Patel (21, 14b) got his boundaries underway in the sixteenth over, hitting Fisher for two sixes and a four before sending one into the hands of Ferguson off the bowling of Fisher.

Ben Mike and Louis Kimber saw the 200 up for the Running Foxes, as Mike smacked Thompson’s full toss back down the wicket and over the rope for his second four.

Leicestershire required 31 from the final two overs of the evening.

With the penultimate ball of the penultimate over, Ferguson claimed the wicket of Kimber for 10(10b), with Lyth catching the batsman on the rope at long on.

The Foxes required 23 runs for the win heading into the final over with Willey bowling. Defeat was all but confirmed once the Yorkshire skipper had the better of Mike (31, 20b) as Lyth caught the Foxes man on the long on boundary.

Callum Parkinson (2no, 2b) and Naveen (0no, 0b) remained in the middle as the Vikings claimed an 18-run victory of the Leicestershire Foxes on a night where an aggregate of 462 runs were posted.

FIGURES | Parkinson 4-0-31-1, Ackermann 4-0-31-1, Naveen 4-0-49-2, Griffiths 3-0-60-0, Mike 2-0-21-0, Lilley 3-0-43-0

Willey 4-0-44-3, Fisher 4-0-45-2, Thompson 30-0-39-1, Ferguson 4-0-28-2, Lyth 1-0-24-0, Rashid 4-0-37-0

FOXES | Ackermann (C), Griffiths, Hill, Inglis (wk), Kimber, Lilley, Mike, Naveen, Patel, Parkinson, Steel

VIKINGS | Lyth, Bairstow (wk), Malan, Kohler-Cadmore, Brook, Fraine, Willey (C), Thompson, Fisher, Rashid, Ferguson

IMAGES | Thanks to John Mallett of Outside Off for supplying images throughout the game.