Lancs Vs. Durham Report

Croft Shines As Durham Fall Like Dominoes.

Lancashire have continued their Twenty20 success by recording what seemed in the context of this tournament like an innings victory over the Durham Dynamos. Steven Croft and Karl Brown saw Lancashire over the line as the Lightning recorded an eight-wicket victory with 6 overs to bowl. This win puts them joint top with rivals, Yorkshire, who they play on Friday and the undefeated, Nottingham, who they face the following Tuesday.

                                                                 
                                                                          Steven Croft hitting one of four sixes in his 65 not out.

Going into the game Durham appeared to have an enormous amount of batting power. Phil Mustard has the consistent ability to score runs fast and his opening partner, Herschelle Gibbs is a world-renowned T20 specialist. This season Old Trafford has been dubbed a flat wicket and the batting statistics speak for themselves. So when Durham won the toss and chose to bat it was slightly worrying if you were a Lancashire fan. Despite this it was the Lightning who made the most impressive start. Tom Smith’s first over went for just four runs and in the next over he took a priceless catch off the bowling of Arafat when Gibbs chipped the ball into the air. A simplistic catch but the implications were much more significant as it set a sombre tone to the innings. Durham were unable score runs quickly in the overs that followed as captain Glen Chapple continued his fine form with the ball. Perhaps one of the most bizarre dismissals of the season occurred, when Ben Stokes stood on his own wicket to give Chapple the wicket he deserved, leaving Durham 29-2.

Mustard and MyBurgh seemed to steady a sinking ship, until another comedy of errors saw the Durham keeper run-out due to a breakdown in communication between the two batsmen. MyBurgh has been in impressive form of late and with Dale Benkenstien, Durham formed a partnership that was beginning to put the innings back on track. It took a high quality delivery from Gary Keedy to hit Benkenstien’s off stump to swing the game once more back in to Lancashire’ favour. At 53-4 Durham needed to find consistency to reach a credible total but continued to struggle in this endeavour. MyBurgh had done all the hard work in seeing off the majority of good bowling but he went for the big shot and he was superbly caught at long-on by Steven Croft off the bowling of Keedy. Now 65-5, the Dynamo’s were getting desperate and things needed to change quickly.

Eventually Durham did get a bit of luck but they also played in a manner that really should have come sooner. An onslaught from Gareth Breese and Gordon Muchall allowed Durham to drag themselves away from defeat, for at least a while longer. Muchall scored 17 from 17 and Breese led the attack with 33 from 18. The wicket of Muchall came when he was caught by Tom Smith as Yasir Arafat became the most prolific wicket taker in domestic Twenty20, overtaking Azhar Mahmood. The cameo of Gareth Breese came to and end and with it Durham’s chances simultaneously vanished. When Breese was dismissed Durham had slumped to 109-7 and with little fire power left the innings looked all but over. There was still time for some entertainment as Keedy forced Liam Plunkett to play-on and the very next ball Mitchell Claydon chipped the ball for a superb caught and bowled as Keedy finished with 4-25. The last wicket of Graham Onions was taken after the shot of the innings as he hit Smith over long-on for six. He was eventually caught and very well to by Paul Horton when he failed to connect properly with Luke Procter’s delivery as Durham were all out for 121.

Giving Lancashire’s recent T20 success and particular the form of the top four batsmen, a target of 122 seemed so meagre to ask of the Lightning. Despite early success for Stephen Moore, hitting a six over backward-point, he was out cheaply for 8 when he was caught by MyBurgh off the bowling of Claydon. Durham had started their defence well and for a period of time Lancashire batsmen, Tom Smith and Steven Croft were struggling to score runs. These fears were put to bed when one over from Graham Onions was hit for 23 runs as Steven Croft led the Lancashire chase. The Lightning continued to chase well scoring well above the required rate and the result of this game was slowly becoming easy to work out.

Croft’s 50 came from just 34 balls and Tom Smith contributed brilliantly as Lancashire sought to chase 122 in minimal time. Perhaps in attempt to win the match in style, Tom Smith was caught by Graham Onions off of spinner Scott Borthwick for 40, in an innings containing 5 fours and a six. Karl Brown (5*) and Steven Croft (65*) were able to see Lancashire home with 6 overs left. In the context of Twenty20, a winning margin of 8 wickets and 6 overs will feel like an innings victory for Lancashire. As poor as Durham were, Lancashire played beautifully and there were four key players in this game. Bowler Yasir Arafat (3-21) who became the most prolific wicket taker in domestic T20, Gary Keedy (4-25) ripped through Durham’s middle order and had the best figures of the game, Tom Smith’s 40 from 31 balls and Steven Croft 65 from 44 balls which warranted him receiving the man of the match award.

Lancashire VS. Leicestershire T20 Report

Lancashire Do T20 Double Over Champions Leicestershire.

Lancashire have recorded consecutive wins against over the current Twenty20 champions the Leicestershire Foxes. After the Foxes were beaten last week at home to the Lightning by 11 runs, this defeat means they have lost the first four games of their title defence. It has always been difficult for teams to qualify for the quarter final stages of this competition and Leicestershire will have to aim for an unbeaten run until the end of the group stages if they hope to do so. Lancashire have, by record, the best T20 record and opponents Leicestershire have the 2nd best, winning this competition the most out of any county (2).

Leicestershire won the toss and decided to bat first and based on the batting power they had on offer this was understandable. The decision to open not only with Josh Cobb but also Abdul Razzaq, would provide Lancashire with a comprehensive task. Initially though Leicestershire started very slowly with Tom Smith and captain Glen Chapple bowling a tight line. But it would be Yasir Arafat who took the first wicket of Cobb who was caught by Smith for 6. Greg Smith joined Razzaq but was unlucky to get a thick edge to Keedy at third-man off Chapple's bowling and only score 2. Leicestershire's problems continued when Sarwan was trapped LBW to Chapple for 7, leaving the Foxes on 29-3.

Razzaq was finally joined by a stable batting partner and with Matthew Boyce Leicestershire's innings was able to develop dangerously. Despite Stephen Parry only going for 6.50 an over (0-26) his spin partner and veteran Gary Keedy was very expensive at 13.25 an over (0-53). Razzaq lead this surge during the middle overs bring up his 50 and the foxes scored 51 runs in 6 overs without loosing a wicket.In the 17th over he continued to score boundaries but was, to the relief of the Lightning, caught by Stephen Moore in doing so off the bowling of Arafat for a well made 61. A partnership of 92 runs from just 68 balls had put the game back in the balance.

But Leicestershire were far from finished in hitting boundaries. Boyce and Wayne White proved how good they are in this format of cricket and both batsmen continued to hurt Lancashire. The foxes scored 55 runs from the last 3 overs as Boyce finished with an impressive 63 from 38 and White 19 from 9. As Leicestershire had effectively scored 81 runs from 5 overs, Lancashire were aware that the game was slipping away and that a record chase at Old Trafford was necessary for victory.

As always Stephen Moore and Tom Smith started positively for Lancashire as captain Matthew Hoggard and Razzaq found it hard to restrict the openers. At the end of the power play at 6 overs Lancashire were on 60-0 and were poised nicely to pursue the target of 180. Moore soon brought up his 51 from 29 balls and a relatively hard chase was being made to look simplistic. But after this fantastic start Moore was shortly out for 54 from 32 when he was bowled by spinner Claude Henderson.

A first-wicket stand of 75 had given Lancashire the best possible chance of victory and when Steven Croft joined Smith, the innings continued to flourish. Smith had settled for a passive role at the crease with Moore but with Croft he came put of his shell as he hit 3 sixes. Croft contributed well, rotating the strike with Smith but also adding some boundaries of his own. But in an attempt to hit mor sixes, Smith was caught by Mommsen off Taylor for 42 from 31 leaving Lancashire 113-2. Lancashire were looking comfortable but the late surge of runs from Leicestershire were always a factor to consider. Croft and Karl Brown were still required to score 65 runs which would be by no means easy.

Croft pushed for singles and twos in combination with Brown who quite simply played beautiful cricket shots. Brown hit 4 boundaries and Croft smashed 2 sixes to comfortably guide Lancashire home. Croft finished on 41 from 29 and Brown 39 from 23 as Lancashire chased the highest target at Old Trafford in T20 history with a whole over to spare.

Leicestershire have now lost the first four consecutive games and their title defence appears to be all but over barring a miracle run of form. Lancashire however continue to play good cricket and in this game exemplified how strong they are particularly as a batting unit. A man of the match was hard to pick as any one of Lancashire's four batsmen were eligible, but it was the captain Chapple who led by example with astounding figures of 2-10 from 4 overs. His economical bowling and ability to take wickets was crucial in a game where scoring runs was obviously easy. This win puts Lancashire into third place on run rate behind rivals Yorkshire who they face next Friday at Headingley.

Tom Maynard Tribute

A Tribute To Tom Maynard.

It came as a great shock to every cricket fan today, to hear that the very talented Surrey Batsmen, Tom Maynard, was sadly killed earlier today when he was hit by a tube train. As a big fan of the game of cricket and the respect I have for a player of his potential I want people to remember just how much Maynard achieved in just 5 years of professional cricket.

                                                                   

Maynard made his county cricket debut in June 2007 for Glamorgan against Gloucestershire and immediately made an impression scoring 71 on debut. In this one game you could sum up Maynard as a player. He hit 7 fours and 3 sixes exemplifying his destructive nature with the bat, his ability to maintain a good strike rate and the unselfish way he contributed to the teams performance. The high profile he established at Glamorgan attracted the attention of other counties as well as the England Lions.

After much speculation about which club would be lucky enough to sign Maynard, it was announced in 2011 that he would sign a three year deal with Surrey. The immense batting talent that has come out of Surrey over recent years promised to nurture the raw talent he had. Players like Greame Thorpe, Mark Ramprakash, Alec Stewart and more recently Rory Hamilton-Brown, prove how much batting talent came from this one club.

His highest first class score to date came against Worcestershire this year in May, when he scored 143 at New Road. The resilience he showed in this game after Surrey were asked to follow on is a testimony to his perseverance as a professional cricketer. It seemed that he was destined to achieve greatness at the highest level until the tragic news the broke out earlier today.

ECB Chairman Giles Clarke said: “Tom was a player of enormous potential who had already represented England Lions and had an exciting future ahead of him. Our hearts go out to the Maynard family for their tragic loss and we send them and all Tom’s many friends and colleagues within the game our deepest sympathies.”

As a Lancashire fan I cannot claim to have known Tom Maynard that well. However, even from his early days at Glamorgan, I felt he stood out as a highly talented individual. His move to Surrey in 2011 came as little surprise to me giving that he was an amazing batsmen and they tend to flourish at the Oval. I would certainly have considered him to be a future England player, due to his one-day potential.

So I hope that everybody who reads this takes the time to appreciate his talent and how the game of cricket stopped when it heard of his death.

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Lancashire out-fox Leicestershire in T20 thriller.

The Lightning have won their first game in the Twenty20 campaign as they executed an 11 run victory over the current champions, the Leicestershire Foxes. After the heart-ache of last years exit in the semi final to the same opposition, Lancashire can feel they have got the perfect revenge in a thoroughly deserved victory.

The Foxes captain, Matthew Hoggard, won the toss and put Lancashire into bat and this decision was encouraged by the rain that had fallen prior to the start of the game and the fact that the Duckworth Lewis method may well come into contention. Lancashire started slowly and timing the ball was proving to be difficult. Hoggard struck with the last ball of his first over when Tom Smith was caught behind for 4. Steven Croft joined Stephen Moore and both batsmen continued to find scoring runs hard. In the 5th over, Taylor struck when Croft was caught by Wayne White for just 5, leaving Lancashire on 28-2.

Karl Brown joined Moore at the crease, but he played a spectator role as he watched the Lancashire opener hit Leicestershire's bowlers with extreme confidence. Brown was also contributing nicely and assisted his partner well as Lancashire built a 50 run partnership in little time. A big six and consecutive fours for Stephen Moore helped him to make his way towards his 50 which came from 48 balls. But as he attempted to hit another boundary he was caught in the deep by Taylor off the bowling of White, for a vital score of 58.

Lancashire's innings was starting to slow down as Lancashire were restricted to 21 runs in 5 overs. Wayne White was able to pick up the wicket of Brown for 24, when he chipped the ball into the air and was caught by spinner Claude Henderson. Horton and Cross continued to find scoring runs quickly to be a complex task and when Horton tried to hit a six he was caught superbly by Jaques Du Toit off the bowling of Razzaq for 11. Lancashire wicket-keeper, Gareth Cross, was Razzaq's next victim as he was caught by Boyce for just 9. Lancashire were in danger of posting a below par score at 135-6, but overseas star, Yasir Arafat hit an unbeaten 20 and accompanied by Lancashire captain, Glen Chapple, the Lightning managed to set Leicestershire 155 to win, after batting in tough conditions.  

In reply Leicestershire got off to a very slow start and after 4 overs they were 14-1, as the West Indian Sarwan was caught behind off Chapple for 4. Josh Cobb was destructive against Lancashire in the CB40 campaign, hitting 137 runs and in the early stages of the Foxes' innings he proved to be the only source of opposition to Lancashire's plans. His partner Du Toit was out cheaply for 2, also edging behind but off of Arafat's bowling.

Finally Leicestershire's innings gained impotence when Smith joined Cobb, as they scored 27 runs from 3 overs. Lancashire were pleased to see the back of Josh Cobb when he was caught by Croft off the bowling of Stephen Parry for 32. 2 balls later and the dangerous Smith was also out to Parry when he was bowled for 21, leaving Leicestershire on 62-4. The Foxes lost their 5th wicket at 72 when Taylor was caught by Croft off the bowling of Luke Procter for 6.  

The Foxes were always in the game as long as Abdul Razzaq was still batting and accompanied by Matthew Boyce, Leicestershire were able to make up for lost time. They scored steadily but always seemed to be behind the required run rate and Lancashire seemed to be content to allow them to score 7 runs an over. After his great start, the economical Chapple returned to take the wicket of Boyce, who was caught behind by Cross for 26. Wayne White's attempt to get Razzaq the strike ended in his demise as he was run out for 2. Razzaq continued to resist, but he couldn't chase all the runs on his own and he was eventually caught by Horton off of Arafat for an impressive 36. Tail Enders Eckersley and Henderson were left with little chance of scoring 20 from the final over and they managed just 8 runs as Lancashire recorded their first T20 win of the season.  

The decision to play Chapple seemed to boost the team and as always Stephen Moore played a vital role at the top of Lancashire's order. Parry and Arafat picked up 2 wickets a piece and Lancashire can feel that they put in a strong all round performance that warranted this victory.




Lancashire lose in rain affected T20 opener.



                                                                                                                                (c) Daniel Adams 2012



After rain had persistently fallen throughout play, umpires Willey and O'shaugnessy ended play, with the Derbyshire Falcons comfortably ahead of the required Duckworth Lewis score. After the disappointment of losing in last years semi final, the Lightning have got off to a bad start, in yet another game that was affected by rain.

The Falcons won the toss and put the visitors into bat, but Lancashire opened-up confidently as Tom Smith's return to the squad started with consecutive fours. He was soon caught playing a weak shot to naved off the bowling of Groenewald for 9. As predicted, Stephen Moore was an essential part of Lancashire's chances, hitting 3 fours and 2 sixes, inside 9 balls. He was eventually caught behind for 34 by povnton when he flashed at a wide delivery from Groenewald.

Captain Steven Croft and Karl Brown put together a useful partnership of 44, in which Brown was dropped on three occasions. Brown was finally caught when he chipped the ball back to bowler Chesney Hughes for 27. Paul Horton joined Croft and contributed 11 runs before he was stumped off the bowling of Wainwright. Gareth Cross scored a useful 16 but was run out, leaving Lancashire on 141-5. Croft had formulated a captains innings, scoring singles regularly to keep the scoreboard ticking over but soon decided to play in a flamboyant style scoring consecutive sixes.

After hitting his third 6 in 9 balls, he was disappointed to fall short of a well deserved 50, when he was caught by Madsen off the bowling of Turner for 46. Lancashire's Twenty over overseas player, Yasir Arafat, was able to add an unbeaten score of 11 accompanied by Sajid Mahmood who finished on 3 not out, as the visitors posted a competitive score of 168-6 in tough conditions.

Rain continued to fall through the interval and as Derbyshire openers Usman Khawaja and   Wes Durston came out to chase 169, they were aware that Duckworth Lewis may well be a factor. They started positively, scoring 22 runs before Australian, Usman Khawaja, was caught behind by Gareth Cross off the bowling of Arafat for 3. Sajid Mahmood had leaked 25 runs from just 11 balls but he managed to take the vital wicket of Durston who made 31 before he was caught by Croft at backward point.

Durston had done a severe amount of damage to Lancashire's chances, as the Falcons were comfortably ahead on Duckworth Lewis when rain started fall progressively harder. Matters were made worse when Whiteley was able to hit the usually reliable spinner, Stephen Parry, for two sixes. The Lightning were able to drag the match back slightly by taking 2 wickets without Derby scoring a run. First Madsen was caught behind off the bowling of Procter for 9 and Whiteley was bowled by Parry for an impressive 24, as the Falcons stumbled in a key period of the match.

Luke Procter took his second wicket and Croft took his second catch as Redfern was dismissed for a duck, leaving Derbyshire on 82-5. Lancashire appeared to be slight favourites, but with Chesney Hughes and Rana Naved at the crease, the game was not yet over. They managed to score 36 runs form just 20 balls as they advanced towards chasing their original target of 169, as they disregarded Duckworth Lewis. But rain became too heavy and finally after 11.3 overs, the players came off and they did didn't return.

Derbyshire won by 17 runs on the D/L method and fully deserved to do so. They won the toss and although Lancashire set a strong target, Derby batted well and Lancashire bowled badly in poor conditions. Mahmood finished with figures of 1-42 from just 15 balls and in truth this was the difference between the two sides. Although naved was similarly poor (0-56) other bowlers like Smith or Arafat would've been much more economical, which is after all the name of the game. Ahead of tomorrows visit to Leicestershire, Lancashire seriously need to consider if Mahmood is worth having in their squad.

Derbyshire Falcons Vs. Lancashire Lightning T20

VS.

Tomorrow I will be visiting Lancahire’s first Twenty20 game of the season against Derbyshire and a match report will shortly follow. It will be good to see Lancashire after the dissapointment of last years campaign when we were eliminated in a super over in the semi finals.

Lancashires Key Players:

Stephen Moore: His recent CB40 form has seen him hit 4 consecutive 50’s and has been vital to Lancashires success in the campaign so far. Last year he was always instrumental in getting Lancashire off to quick starts in Twenty20 and I excpect him to be a vital part of the team this year.



                                                                (C) Daniel Adams 2012



Stephen Parry: Through the middle overs, it is crucial to have a bowler that constricts the opposition to a low amount of runs and Parry is that bowler. He is economical and is capable of taking key wickets.

                                                                 (C) Daniel Adams 2012

One-to-watch:

Yasir Arafat: Should he feature, Arafat will be an entertaining all-rounder to watch. He bowls medium fast, with variations of slower balls and fast yorkers but is also capable of hitting a bucket load of sixes!

                                                                  (C) Daniel Adams 2012

Lancashire Vs. Worcestershire CB40 Match Review

Rain is a royal pain for Worcestershire.

Worcestershire Royals were put in to bat by Lancashire captain Steven Croft and were immediately on the back-foot when Moeen Ali was trapped LBW to Mahmood playing across the line of the ball for just 3. Vikram Solanki took the initiative inside the powerplay to find the boundary and soon reached his 50 from 41 balls, with 3 fours and 3 sixes. The Dangerous Aussie, Phil Hughes, was able to structure a slower innings and accompanied by Solanki, Worcestershire brought up the 100 in the 19^th over. The hundred partnership between Solanki and Hughes soon followed          Lancashire opener, Stephen Moore (above)

coming from 99 balls.                                                guides his side to victory with his fourth

                                                                                                          consecutive fifty.

Lancashire’s bowlers were frustrated by this impressive partnership, but remained relatively economical during the middle period of the innings. Hughes brought up a steady 50 from 71 balls, containing 3 fours and 1 six. The Royals took the batting powerplay at the start of the 30^th over and sought to utilise it to their advantage. Phil Hughes lived up to expectation hitting Ajmal Shahzad for three consecutive boundaries. Vikram Solanki was comfortably making his way through the powerplay and soon brought up his 13^th one day hundred for Worcestershire from 96 balls, hitting 7 fours and 3 sixes. The powerplay served its purpose as Worcestershire collected 40 runs from 4 overs and they soon reached 200 in the 34^th over. Likewise the 200 partnership followed between the Solanki and Hughes as they brought up the record 2^nd wicket partnership for Worcestershire in one day cricket.

Solanki’s innings finally came to an end when he was cleverly bowled by youngster Stephen Parry for 121 from just 107 balls, leaving Worcestershire strongly poised on 212-2 with over 5 overs left. The destructive power of Hughes was joined by a short stay from Gareth Andrews who was caught behind by Gareth Cross off the bowling of Gary Keedy for 5. James Cameron was bowled by Shahzad for 3 and Mitchell was caught by Shahzad off the bowling of Mahmood for 0, as Worcestershire stumbled losing 4 wickets for 32 runs.

 Hughes was starting to run out of destructive batting partners but he worked his way towards his century, which came from 109 balls and contained 8 fours and 2 sixes. In the last over of the innings, Hughes was caught behind off the bowling of Shahzad for a magnificent 104, leaving Worcestershire on 258 for 6. Ben Scott fell first ball, LBW to Shahzad and Kervezee was caught by Moore off the bowling of Shahzad for just 4. A desperately attempted single from the last ball, ended in the demise of Choudry who was run out by the direct hit of Captain Steven Croft. Shahzad finished with impressive figures of 4 for 51 as Worcestershire posted a demanding total of 259 for 9.

Lancashire’s chase started as light rain fell but Stephen Moore and Ashwell Prince were professional in their effort to chase 260 as they reached 59 for 0 from 8 overs. Stephen Moore led Lancashire’s pursuit and he soon reached his 50 from 40 balls striking 8 fours in the process. Ashwell Prince was bowled by Moeen Ali the very next ball for 14 as Lancashire reached 66 for 1 from 10 overs.

The first official interruption for rain occurred after 11.4 overs, with Lancashire on 69 for 1 and they were ahead on the Duckworth Lewis method. Initially 17 overs were lost for rain and Lancashire needed a revised target of 162 from 23 overs. But rain continued to fall and and even more overs were lost meaning Lancashire needed 131 from 19 overs.

As play resumed, Stephen Moore and Steven Croft knew they would need to bat in 20/20 fashion to chase the revised total of 131. Captain Croft took the initial responsibility scoring three quick boundaries as Choudry’s first over leaked 14 runs. Further rain delayed Lancashire’s chase but they remained ahead of the Duckworth Lewis method by 12 runs. Eventually rain got the best of the game, but Lancashire were victorious as they won by 12 runs on the Duckworth Lewis method.

  Few people can question the decision to award Vikram Solanki the man of the match for his superb effort of 121 runs. The key to Lancashire’s success was down to the effort of Stephen Moore who was 60 not out at the close of play. It was Moore’s fourth consecutive 50 in the pro 40 campaign and he is proving to be vital in Lancashire’s chances of qualification as the Lightning move to 2nd in Group A.

In a post match interview, Lancashire coach, Peter Moore’s was keen to credit Solanki and Hughes, saying that “they batted superbly” but he believed his bowlers “were always on task” and Stephen Moore’s form with the bat was “essential under the circumstances”.