Lancashire enter a period of must-win matches if they are to stand any chance of progressing from the North Group of the Natwest T20 Blast.
The Lightning suffered another tight defeat at the hands of Nottinghamshire Outlaws, who achieved a three-wicket win when James Taylor hit the final ball of the game for four to secure victory for his side.
Inconsistency has been Lancashire's enemy in the shortest format of the game and could cost them dearly as they play the 2014 winners and the side who beat them in last year's final, before facing Worcestershire in their final group game at New Road.
Warwickshire and Worcestershire are the only two sides to have secured a spot in the quarter-finals so far, which means Lancashire have left themselves the unenviable task of beating the two toughest sides in the group to scrape through to the knockout stages.
The Bears have won their last two encounters against Lancashire, with both of these matches going down to the final ball. In August last year, Birmingham edged a tense final on home soil by four runs despite the efforts of Andrew Flintoff and Lancashire suffered a one-run defeat at Old Trafford when Brendon McCullum made his debut for the Bears in June.
The 2014 Champions have stormed the North Group, losing only two of their eleven group matches to date to secure top spot, while Lancashire have won and lost six group matches to leave them hanging on in fourth place by virtue of their superior net run rate.
When Lancashire have won in the T20 Blast this season, they have been able to pulverise sides with all-round performances, as they did against Leicestershire in their last Twenty20 victory, but narrow defeats have left Ashley Giles's side in danger of failing to progress from the group stages, with three of their last four defeats going to the final ball of the game.
Key Players:
Brendon McCullum has already made his mark on the T20 Blast this season, recording the highest score in the English domestic tournament against Derbyshire at Edgbaston on his home debut. The Kiwi struck 158 not out in just 64 deliveries, an innings including 13 fours and 11 sixes, guiding the Bears to a 60-run win.
The New Zealand captain has scored 2,140 runs in 71 Twenty20 appearances for his country at an average of 35.66 and his record of 6,238 runs is the third-highest in the history of this format behind only Brad Hodge and Chris Gayle. His pedigree in white-ball cricket has seen him represent Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders and Glamorgan.
Karl Brown has enjoyed a superb season across the board, securing his spot at the top of the order in four-day cricket after a remarkable return to form. In limited-overs cricket, Brown has been a dependable hitter for Lancashire, scoring 303 runs in the 2015 campaign.
The 27-year-old batsman has hit three half-centuries this season in the T20 Blast, recording a career-best score of 69 against Yorkshire at Old Trafford. Brown has also hit fifties against Leicestershire and most recently against Nottinghamshire, but he was also Lancashire's highest scorer against Warwickshire in the final last year, scoring 55 in 28 balls to take the match to final ball.
Team News:
Birmingham 13-man squad: Varun Chopra (c), Tim Ambrose (w/k), Rikki Clarke, Laurie Evans, Recordo Gordon, Oliver Hannon-Dalby, Ateeq Javid, Tom Lewis, Brendon McCullum, Tom Milnes, Jeetan Patel, Josh Poysden, Chris Woakes.
Lancashire 14-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Tom Bailey, Karl Brown, Jordan Clark, Alex Davies (w/k), James Faulkner, Paul Horton, Kyle Jarvis, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Stephen Parry, Ashwell Prince, Luke Procter.
Match Information:
Weather and conditions: Dry and cloudy to start with, but it will become warmer as the evening progresses and the sun starts to break through. For a full weather forecast click here.
Ground: Edgbaston
Start time: 6.30pm
Umpires: Paul Baldwin, Mark Benson
Match odds (SkyBet): Birmingham 8/11, Lancashire 11/10
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