Fell century sends Lancashire out of One-Day Cup after Worcester defeat

Tom Fell achieved his first century in any format since making his comeback from two spells of cancer to guide Worcestershire to a comfortable victory by four wickets at New Road and end Lancashire's hopes of reaching the quarter-finals in the One-Day Cup.

The Worcestershire batsman recorded his first List A hundred and a career-best score of 116 not out, as the Rapids chased a modest target of 268 with 14 balls to spare to keep their last-eight hopes intact. Steven Croft led his side to 267/7 with a defiant 78, sharing useful partnerships with Karl Brown (43) and latterly Luke Procter (47), but the visitors fell short of a truly competitive score.

Defeat against Worcester means that Lancashire have now been eliminated from both the One-Day Cup and T20 Blast in the space of less than 48 hours, with the Red Rose county returning to four-day action at Hampshire on Thursday. Fell - who suffered two bouts of testicular cancer since Christmas - anchored the Worcester run-chase superbly, supported by cameos from Ross Whiteley (38) and Ben Cox (31) down the order to ensure two valuable points for the hosts.

Hopeful of recording three white-ball victories in a row, Lancashire decided to bat first at New Road, with Alviro Petersen displaying early intent inside the powerplay with two boundaries in the second over off Ed Barnard. The South-African opener overcame a brief issue with his hamstring to record seven boundaries in total during his brisk 32 from 27 balls, but the loss of Tom Smith (14) in the seventh over halted Lancashire's progress.

Smith miscued a delivery from Kyle Abbott to Joe Leach at mid-off at 30/1, attempting to play the ball into the leg-side, but only managing to send the ball high into the air for a simple catch. Petersen continued to go along in boundaries, perhaps due to any latent concerns about his hamstring, hitting Abbott for three boundaries in a row to reinvigorate the innings, but his dismissal signalled a circumspect recovery from Lancashire thereafter.

His three fours were immediately followed by a thin edge through to Ben Cox, as Petersen fell to compatriot Abbott (3-56) at 49/2. Liam Livingstone attempted to rectify the situation with the first maximum of the match from the bowling of off-spinner George Rhodes, but quick work from Cox behind the stumps ensured another of Lancashire's batsman was back in the pavilion.

Livingstone (18) was caught down the leg-side to give Rhodes (1-59) respite after being dispatched for six in the previous over and with wickets continuing to fall at regular intervals, Lancashire were forced to retreat from their positive approach into a much more sensible mindset. The Worcester spinners were able to take advantage of this by pinning Lancashire down in the middle overs, with Brett D'Oliveira in particular excelling with the ball to finish with 0-27 from ten overs.

Brown and Croft helped Lancashire to add 64 runs for the fourth wicket, but the pressure of the economical bowling eventually started to build on the visitors. Cox was in action once again behind the stumps to remove Brown for 43 when Daryll Mitchell (1-41) encouraged a thing edge through to the keeper, while Croft progressed to a crucial half-century in 78 balls, one that included a pulled six and four boundaries.

Procter attempted to inject some impetus into the innings by scoring 47 from 48 balls, supporting his skipper with another dependable knock for Lancashire in the 50-over format. The all-rounder came close to recording his third half-century of the campaign after hitting Rhodes back over his head for a huge six, adding 99 runs with Croft for the fifth wicket inside 15 overs to put Lancashire back on course.

However, both batsmen were dismissed in the space of ten balls in the closing stages of the innings, with Croft falling for a valiant 78 to a stunning catch in the deep by Whiteley off Barnard (1-41). Procter then departed three runs shy of his fifty when he failed to connect with a ramp shot to Abbott, who claimed his third wicket to leave the score at 256/6. Jordan Clark (9) then followed to Leach (1-38) in the final over of the innings when he picked out Rhodes on the long-off boundary, as Lancashire posted 267/7.

Saqib Mahmood overcame dislocating his finger by removing the hosting skipper Mitchell (5) at the start of the fourth over when he edged behind to Tom Moores at 12/1, but an expensive over worth 15 runs from Kyle Jarvis in the next over largely set the tone for a costly powerplay for Lancashire. Fell started the over with the first of 15 boundaries and that was followed up by a boundary and then a six from the final ball by Kohler-Cadmore, who struck a run-a-ball 30 at the top of the innings.

Fell then hit three fours in a row off Mahmood in the next over, with Lancashire conceding 30 runs in the space of two overs. Croft felt the wrath of a confident Worcestershire batting line-up, conceding 13 runs from his first over to set the platform for a relatively straightforward victory at 68/1 after the first ten overs.

Smith forced a much-needed breakthrough in the following over when he had Kohler-Cadmore caught well by Brown in the deep at 70/2, although successive boundaries for England Lions batsman Joe Clarke (25) offered Lancashire negligible respite. Clarke and Fell established an accomplished partnership worth 46 runs before the former was held well by Brown, diving forward at short mid-off, an overdue wicket given that Worcester were comfortably ahead of where they needed to be.

Stephen Parry (2-44) brought Lancashire back into contention when he had D'Oliveira (4) stumped by Moores, the second wicket to fall in the space of 11 balls, but Fell progressed to a 47-ball fifty with eight boundaries to indicate his intent to take the Rapids to victory. Fell found able support in the hard-hitting Whiteley, adding 83 runs for the fifth wicket to deny Lancashire a passage back into the contest.

Whiteley welcomed Clark into the attack with two boundaries in succession from his only over of the match, falling for 38 when he was bowled by Croft (1-49) at 205/5. Any fears of a Lancashire revival were put to bed by a cameo of 31 from 25 balls by Cox, who attempted to end the match with a flurry of boundaries and a straight six.

Fell completed what has surely been an arduous comeback from his cancer treatment in the winter with a maiden List A century and his first hundred since making his return to the game in 104 balls. By the time Cox fell to Mahmood (2-35) at 262/6, the contest had long-since been decided, with Fell finishing unbeaten on 116 from 123 deliveries to guide Worcester to a four-wicket victory with 14 balls to spare, sending Lancashire out of the One-Day Cup before their final group game against Durham tomorrow.

Preview: Worcestershire Rapids v Lancashire Lightning - RLODC

Lancashire Lightning have named a 14-man squad for their penultimate Royal London One-Day Cup match against Worcestershire Rapids at New Road on Sunday.

Ashley Giles' side will be hopeful that they can continue their recent winning form in white-ball cricket, with Lancashire needing to win both of their remaining 50-over matches against Worcester and Durham on Monday to advance to the knockout stages of the tournament.

The televised victory against Derbyshire Falcons on Wednesday featured a List A best performance from Liam Livingstone, who struck 98 to guide the Lightning to a winning margin of 27 runs at the 3aaa County Ground. More recently, Lancashire were eliminated from the NatWest T20 Blast despite beating Birmingham by 30 runs in a low-scoring contest at Old Trafford to finish in fifth place in the North Group.

Lancashire and Worcestershire have shared the same fate in the One-Day Cup so far this summer, winning two and losing three of their six group games, with the other match being a no result. Therefore, this game will affectively decide which side will not be able to progress from the North Group, given that both sides would ideally need to win their remaining games to qualify.

The Rapids enter this match on the back of successful defeats in the 50-over competition to Warwickshire and Northamptonshire, with their last victory in this format coming on June 12 against Durham. Worcestershire's last game in any competition saw them host Pakistan in a friendly, as they prepare for the Third Test against England on Wednesday at Edgbaston.

Lancashire travel to New Road with fond memories, with Jos Buttler's record-breaking 20-ball fifty helping the Lightning to post their highest powerplay score in Twenty20 cricket of 98/1 alongside the in-form Petersen. That match ended in a seven-wicket win for Lancashire, who successfully chased their target of 199 with 11 balls to spare to galvanise their bid for a quarter-final spot in the Blast.

Worcestershire squad: TBC

Lancashire 14-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Nathan Buck, Karl Brown, Jordan Clark, Kyle Jarvis, Rob Jones, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Moores (wk), Stephen Parry, Alviro Petersen, Luke Procter, Tom Smith.

Lancashire eliminated after winning low-scoring thriller against Birmingham

Lancashire Lightning's slim hopes of defending their Twenty20 title were put to bed despite a 30-run victory in a low-scoring contest with Birmingham Bears at Old Trafford.

Setting a modest target of 125 would not have been possible were it not for an unbroken partnership for the sixth wicket between Tom Moores (39 off 32) and Jordan Clark (31 off 18) worth 65 runs in 39 balls. The Bears then laboured to 94/8, with Saqib Mahmood (3-12) excelling with the ball to send the visitors out of the competition, with Durham's victory against Derbyshire sending them through to the quarter-finals.

For only the fourth time in 15 seasons, Lancashire have failed to advance from the group stages, finishing in fifth place one point behind Durham. Early signs suggested that Lancashire had made a mess of this must-win contest, but a sluggish wicket proved to get the better of both sides, with Birmingham suffering the added disadvantage of batting under lights against an array of Lancashire spin.

Stephen Parry featured strongly in his 100th T20 appearance, leading an economical spin quartet alongside Arron Lilley (2-21), Steven Croft and Liam Livingstone. Lancashire realised that scoring runs freely was not going to be possible from a very early stage in their innings, losing Tom Smith to Rikki Clarke in the third over when he was trapped lbw for 6. 

Karl Brown (5) followed in the next over when he swept a slower ball from Ricordo Gordon into the hands of Laurie Evans at deep square-leg, leaving Lancashire in trouble at 23/2. Lancashire's nightmare continued for some time after the powerplay, with Livingstone being bowled by Jeetan Patel for 10, before captain Croft (1) fell the same way to Josh Poysden at 44/4 to leave the hosts in disarray.

Petersen's recent form in T20 cricket suggested that he would be the one to lead the recovery, but the South-African was unable to get on top of the spinners and the pressure forced him into an error, as he skied Poysden (2-21) to Ian Bell at extra cover, falling for 27 from 33 balls after being punished for trying to attempt the first real shot in anger of the innings.

At this stage it was hard to see how Lancashire were going to survive all 20 overs, let alone post a score that they could feasibly defend, but a terrific partnership between Moores and Clark ensured that the bowlers had enough to work with. Initially, boundaries were met with ironic cheers and rightly so, given that there had not been a boundary for 62 balls at one stage in Lancashire's innings.

Successive fours from Clark helped Lancashire to progress beyond their lowest ever score in T20 cricket - 91 v Derbyshire in 2003 - before the all-rounder hit a straight six to bring up the 100 for Lancashire in the dying embers of the innings. Moores overcame a scratchy start, timing the ball superbly down the ground for the majority of his stay at the crease, with a straight boundary bringing up the fifty-partnership in 34 balls with Clark, who had hit 18 runs from the previous over.

Moores continued to hit the ball with tremendous power, dispatching a straight six off in the final over from Gordon to take the score to 124/5, a total that was far from ideal, but in hindsight it was more than enough. The early signs were worrying when the Bears took 12 runs from Nathan Buck's first over, but Mahmood started a memorable evening with the ball by removing Bell with his very first delivery, forcing the skipper to edge behind to Moores for 13.

Sam Hain then led the pursuit for the Bears, hitting back-to-back fours off Lilley, but a mix up with William Porterfield (5) saw the Irishman comfortably short of his ground after Parry threw the ball to Moores for a run out at 33/2. Lancashire had to endure a worrying spell of seven overs without a wicket, with the dangerous Australian Matthew Wade occupying the crease alongside Hain.

However, the two boundaries hit by Hain in Lilley's first over - the fifth over of the innings - would prove to be the last boundaries of the Warwickshire innings, as the rotation of Lancashire's four spinners proved to be infuriating for the Bears. Mahmood followed up his wicket with a rare maiden in his next over and the pressure started to build on Birmingham when boundaries and any form of runs began to dry up.

Livingstone came into the attack and made an impact with his fourth ball, forcing an edge from Hain (28) through to Moores, who had to take a smart catch to leave the Bears with an uphill struggle at 61/3. The run rate started to climb sharply and the added pressure saw wickets fall at an alarming rate, with Wade falling three balls later to Croft when he was bowled for 16, a crucial wicket in the scheme of the game.

Soon enough, the Bears needed to score nearly ten runs per over and the loss of their remaining big-hitters resigned the contest to a comfortable victory for Lancashire, who could not have imagined such a margin of victory at the halfway stage in the match. Evans tried to ramp Lilley, but could only find Smith at short fine leg to send him back to the dugout for 7 and the off-spinner had two wickets in as many deliveries when Clarke was caught brilliantly in the deep by Livingstone to leave the Bears on the brink at 80/6.

Mahmood returned to buffer his already impressive figures, forcing Javid (4) to mis-time his stroke to Livingstone at the end of the next over. The England Lions seamer then claimed his third and final victim in the final over of the match, with Parry getting under a skied shot from Gordon (3) at 92/8.

Preview: Lancashire Lightning v Birmingham Bears - NatWest T20 Blast

Lancashire Lightning have named a 14-man squad for their final North Group NatWest T20 Blast match against Birmingham Bears at Emirates Old Trafford on Friday evening.

The reigning champions need a minor miracle in the last round of matches to progress to the knockout stages of the tournament, with a win against Birmingham not being enough in isolation. Lancashire also need Durham and Derbyshire's match at Chester-le-Street to either be a washout or tie, which would allow Ashley Giles' side to sneak into fourth place, assuming their net run rate is good enough to leapfrog Warwickshire.

After winning two of their last four matches, including their latest victory against Durham last Friday, Lancashire have a faint chance of making it to the quarter-finals for the eleventh time. Should Lancashire fail to do so, it will only be the fourth time in 15 seasons that the Lightning have failed to advance from the group stages.

Unlike Lancashire, the Bears have their Twenty20 destiny in their own hands, knowing that a win at Old Trafford would secure a place in the knockout stages and end the campaign for the chasing pack. Lancashire's win at Durham featured strong performances from Alviro Petersen, Karl Brown and Liam Livingstone, who all made scores in the forties to help the visitors post a target of 177.

Saqib Mahmood then took three wickets in the Durham run-chase, as Lancashire won by four runs to present them with an unlikely chance of progressing from the North Group. The form of Petersen has been a revelation in Lancashire's T20 side of late, with the South-African taking his tally to 341 runs in his last six innings in the Blast, including an unbeaten century against Leicestershire.

Lancashire 14-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Nathan Buck, Karl Brown, Jordan Clark, Kyle Jarvis, Rob Jones, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Moores, Stephen Parry, Alviro Petersen, Luke Procter, Tom Smith.

Birmingham 15-man squad: Ian Bell (c), Keith Barker, Rikki Clarke, Laurie Evans, Recordo Gordon, Sam Hain, Oliver Hannon-Dalby, Ateeq Javid, Matt Lamb, Jeetan Patel, Josh Poysden, William Porterfield, Aaron Thompson, Matthew Wade (wk), Chris Wright.

Livingstone and Jarvis star in 50-over victory at Derbyshire

Liam Livingstone hit a List A best of 98 to help Lancashire Lightning reignite their quarter-final aspirations in the Royal London One-Day Cup with a crucial 27-run victory against Derbyshire.

The Falcons could only muster 254/9 chasing under the floodlights at the 3aaa County Ground, after Livingstone and Lancashire captain Steven Croft (68) had guided the visitors to a strong total of 281/8 with a partnership worth 133 runs for the fourth wicket.

Kyle Jarvis then took 4-31 to thwart the Derby run-chase, with opener Billy Godleman making 91 at the top of the innings, sharing a potentially dangerous partnership with Kiwi batsman Hamish Rutherford (47) for the second-wicket stand, one that added 79 runs to put the home side in a good position in their pursuit of 282 after the Lightning chose to bat first.

On a slow pitch with a green tinge, scoring proved to be difficult in the opening stages of the game, a situation that was not helped by the early loss of Alviro Petersen (3) when he was trapped lbw by Ben Cotton (3-62) looking to play into the leg-side. The Derbyshire seamer struck again in his next over to remove Karl Brown (6) via the same mode of dismissal with a slightly straighter delivery, as Lancashire stumbled to 32/2 inside the opening powerplay.

A circumspect start reflected the difficulty of timing the ball, but Livingstone helped to inject some impetus with back-to-back boundaries off Shiv Thakor. Smith, who came into this game on the back of a century for the Second XI and a fifty against Leicestershire, showed initial signs of leading the Lancashire innings, but he was run out for 32 when he was sent back by Livingstone attempting a risky single at 74/3.

It was therefore vital that Livingstone and Croft established a strong platform for Lancashire amidst the regular wickets that were falling, with the pair adding 133 runs in 22 overs for the fourth wicket. Livingstone brought up his half-century off 54 balls in style, clobbering Thakor for a straight six after paddling the seamer for a boundary to demonstrate his credentials in front of the Sky cameras. 

Not to be outdone, Croft hit the first of his three sixes when he dispatched a half-tracker from Matt Critchley (1-66) to the longest boundary on the leg-side, with the Lancashire skipper hitting the spinner for another maximum, this time over mid-wicket. Livingstone made it two sixes in the same Critchley over two balls later when he smashed a huge six over long-on.

Derbyshire's fortunes continued to worsen when wicketkeeper Harvey Hosein had to leave the field with a fractured thumb, with Wayne Madsen taking the gloves in his place. Sixes continued to come regularly for Lancashire, as Livingstone welcomed Cotton back into the attack with a maximum that signalled the hundred-partnership from 96 balls.

Croft advanced to an important fifty of his own in 57 balls after his two sixes off the spinner, while Livingstone progressed to a new career-best score in List A cricket when he reached 92, beating the 91 he made against Kent at Canterbury last summer when he made his List A debut for Lancashire. Croft's third six, another lusty blow over the leg-side boundary, was followed by the unfortunate dismissal of Livingstone, who fell two runs shy of his first one-day century when he was judged lbw to the economical Alex Hughes (1-38) at 207/4 for a run-a-ball 98.

Croft followed three overs later when he tried to sweep slog Critchley for a fourth maximum, only to find Hughes at deep mid-wicket, as the Falcons continued to take important wickets towards the end of the innings. A useful stand worth 39 runs between Luke Procter and Jordan Clark allowed Lancashire to continue their momentum into the latter stages of their innings, with Clark hitting 29 off 17 balls to lead the charge.

The all-rounder dispatched a low full toss off Tony Palladino for a huge six onto the roof of the old player's pavilion, the seventh and final maximum of Lancashire's innings. Procter's useful cameo of 27 from 25 deliveries was ended when he edged behind off Thakor at 272/6 and two balls later Thakor had another victim, as Clark picked out sub fielder, Neil Broom, on the long-on boundary.

Tom Moores (6) fell in the final over to Cotton, who extracted a third wicket when he had the Lancashire 'keeper caught in the covers by Hughes, with the visitors posting 281/8 from their 50 overs. Godleman set about putting an early dent in the target of 282, hitting three fours in the fourth over off Saqib Mahmood to help the Falcons get ahead of the rate.

Jarvis claimed the first of four wickets when he bowled Ben Slater for 7, clipping the top of the bails to leave the score at 35/1 in the seventh over. Godleman continued to be the key man for Derbyshire, hitting two straight sixes in the same over off Clark on his way to a 49-ball fifty, with Rutherford providing useful support to his efforts.

Rutherford, who scored 47 off 27 balls when the sides met two weeks ago in the T20 Blast, was on exactly the same number of runs when he squirted a delivery from Stephen Parry into the hands of Mahmood at point, a vital wicket for Lancashire after the second-wicket stand had survived countless near-misses to add 79 runs at a good pace.

Lancashire continued to chop and change their bowlers in an attempt to not allow Derbyshire to settle, an approach which seemed to be working for the most part, although Godleman's wicket would hold the key in securing victory. Parry (2-38) struck his second breakthrough when he had Madsen caught brilliantly in the deep by Livingstone for 26, before Croft (1-28) had Godleman bowled for 91 in the following over to put Lancashire in charge in the ever-fading light.

These two quick wickets meant that, with ten overs to go, Derbyshire were facing an uphill struggle, needing to score 84 runs to win with two new batsmen at the crease. Jarvis returned to hurt the Falcons' fleeting chances of forcing an unlikely win, bowling Thakor for 15 at 202/5, before a late burst from Clark with the ball ended the contest for the home side.

Clark struck in successive overs to remove Wes Durston (9) and Hughes cheaply, finishing with 2-37 after bowling the Derbyshire captain and forcing Hughes to top-edge to Mahmood at third man for 12. Jarvis' third wicket arrived when he bowled Palladino for 1, with Critchley (17) making it four wickets for the Zimbabwean paceman when he was caught in the covers by Parry.

With Derbyshire nine wickets down and still needing 44 runs to win, the injured Hosein was forced to bat alongside Cotton, although the Falcons were forced to turn down singles for fear of forcing their wicketkeeper to exacerbate his thumb injury with another blow to the hand. Although Lancashire were unable to take the final wicket, the margin of their victory by 27 runs signalled a commanding performance, one that takes them off the bottom of the North Group ahead of two more must-win matches against Worcester on Sunday and Durham on Monday.

Preview: Derbyshire Falcons v Lancashire Lightning - RLODC

Lancashire Lightning must bounce back immediately from their recent defeat at Grace Road if they are to stand any chance of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the One-Day Cup.

The second-leg of a double-header in the 50-over campaign sees an out-of-form Lancashire side travel to Derbyshire for a must-win match against the Falcons at the 3aaa County Ground.

The latest of three defeats in the Royal London Cup - a 131-run loss against Leicestershire Foxes - means that Lancashire's limited-overs season is hanging by a thread, with the reigning Twenty20 champions on the brink of elimination in the Blast.

Chasing 308 to win at Leicester yesterday, Lancashire were bowled out for 176 inside 40 overs, a defeat that puts them bottom of their group. The Foxes' first List A victory in nearly two seasons allowed them to leapfrog Ashley Giles' side in the table and now means that a defeat against Derbyshire would be terminal for Lancashire's white-ball exploits.

Tom Smith followed up his century for the Second XI on Monday with a fifty against Leicestershire, as he and Alviro Petersen established the platform Lancashire required in their pursuit of 308. However, the Lighting slumped from 74 without loss to 176 all out in the space of 26 overs, inflicting another heavy defeat after a record-breaking loss at the hands of their Roses rivals Yorkshire by 242 runs earlier this season.

Lancashire and Derbyshire met recently in the T20 format for another televised fixture and on that occasion it was the Falcons who walked away with victory by six wickets. Petersen hit 79 from 49 balls - his best T20 score in a Lancashire shirt prior to his century against Leicester - but the hosts cruised to victory with eight balls to spare.

Derby made a blistering start to the 50-over campaign, winning both of their opening North Group matches by seven wickets against Worcestershire and Durham respectively, but they are without a win in the format since beating Durham at the start of June. Lancashire, meanwhile, are winless since their opening victory against Warwickshire at Old Trafford.

Derbyshire 14-man squad: Wes Durston (c), Billy Godleman, Ben Slater, Chesney Hughes, Hamish Rutherford, Wayne Madsen, Neil Broom, Shiv Thakor, Alex Hughes, Harvey Hosein (wk), Matt Critchley, Tony Palladino, Ben Cotton, Will Davis.

Lancashire 13-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Nathan Buck, Karl Brown, Jordan Clark, Kyle Jarvis, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Moores (wk), Stephen Parry, Alviro Petersen, Luke Procter, Tom Smith.

Lancashire thrashed at Grace Road after collapse against Leicestershire

Lancashire Lightning suffered another humbling defeat in the Royal London One-Day Cup, as Leicestershire Foxes achieved their first List A victory since August 2014 with a 131-run win at Grace Road.

Chasing 308 runs to win, the visitors were bowled out for 176 inside 40 overs, with Tom Smith top-scoring with 56 for the Red Rose. Lancashire made a good start to their run-chase, reaching 74/0 after Smith and Alviro Petersen set a strong platform, but a top-order collapse of four wickets for 30 runs in nine overs put the Foxes in the driving seat.

Leicestershire made 307/8 after they were put into bat by the visiting captain Steven Croft, with Mark Pettini (92 off 99) and Mark Cosgrove (91 off 82) adding a devastating partnership worth 140 runs for the third wicket to help the hosts to post a match-winning score. Neil Dexter then took career-best figures of 4-22 from seven overs, as Lancashire collapsed from 74/0 to 176 all out in the space of 26 overs.

Lancashire's third defeat in five group matches means that they must bounce back immediately when they travel to Derby tomorrow for the televised fixture, with the threat of elimination from both one-day competitions looming over the reigning T20 champions.

Former Lancashire batsman Paul Horton (32) helped his captain to set a strong platform for the home side with an opening stand worth 54 runs. Smith, who is due to be best man at Horton's wedding, claimed early bragging rights when he had his former Lancashire colleague trapped lbw, although Horton's first ever over in List A cricket would later turn the tables back in the Leicestershire player's favour.

Cameron Delport made a crushing 68 off 36 balls when the sides met in the Blast earlier this month and he showed initial signs of making another telling contribution during a quickfire 25, but he was the next wicket to fall when Tom Moores held a superb diving catch behind the stumps off Jordan Clark (1-47) at 93/2.

Petting led the way for his side with a 65-ball half-century, finding the perfect ally in Cosgrove, as Leicestershire made the most of a strong platform to punish Lancashire. Cosgrove played with a belligerent tone and he also had his share of luck, edging behind square several times without ever finding the fielder, bust instead, the boundary.

The hard-hitting Australian went to fifty in just 51 balls, with his temperament allowing the Foxes to add a hundred-partnership for the third wicket. Smith (2-49) found the vital breakthrough when he denied Pettini a ninth List A hundred, trapping the former Essex batsman lbw for 92 at 233/3. Lancashire managed to recover marginally after this mammoth stand, claiming four wickets for 34 runs in 44 balls, but late hitting from Dexter would ensure that the Foxes topped 300.

Nathan Buck (2-55) returned to remove Cosgrove nine runs short of a century, although it took a superb piece of fielding from Croft at long-off to ensure that Lancashire had their fourth wicket. Croft was forced to throw the ball back into play after wobbling on the boundary, but the Lancashire captain held on for a second time to remove Cosgrove when he was looking to put his foot on the accelerator.

Captain Mark Pettini led the way for his side with 92 from 99 balls.

Buck struck again in his next over, bowling Lewis Hill for 15 at 266/5, before Stephen Parry (1-72) had Michael Burgess (1) out lbw, the third wicket to fall in 16 deliveries. Leicestershire were, momentarily, in danger of failing to reach 300 after the efforts of Pettini and Cosgrove, but a cameo from Dexter put to bed any fears of Leicestershire being held back by the visitors.

Dexter followed up a leg-side boundary with a towering six over mid-wicket, before taking the Foxes beyond 300 with another maximum the next ball off Parry, taking 17 runs from the penultimate over of the match. Kyle Jarvis (2-50) bolstered his figures with two wickets in the final over of the innings, bowling Dexter for 21 off 10 balls with an inch-perfect yorker. The Zimbabwean then had Rob Sayer (1) held by Croft at long-on, but the Foxes had posted a steep target of 308 after reaching 307/8 from their 50 overs.

Lancashire and Smith made a racing start to their pursuit of 308, with the left-handed opening scoring three fours in the same over off Dieter Klein to help the visitors post 56/0 after the ten-over powerplay. Petersen was looking to mimic his success from the Twenty20 match against the Foxes earlier this month, but the South-African followed up his unbeaten century with a more modest return on this occasion.

After establishing a strong start with Smith, Petersen was dragged out of his crease attempting a reverse sweep off Sayer (1-31) and quick work from Niall O'Brien ensured that he was stumped for 24. Lancashire were still in a good position following this wicket, but the loss of both Smith and Karl Brown (11) in the space of six deliveries left a significant dent in their chances.

Following a beautiful lofted drive, Brown picked out the only man on the leg-side boundary in Ollie Freckingham, who took a juggling catch to hand Dexter the first of four wickets at 93/2. Horton (1-7), - who had never previously bowled in 105 List A matches - then had Smith (56) caught at mid-off by Hill with his innocuous part-time spin to earn his first ever wicket in 13 seasons as a professional cricketer.

It was a wicket that more than made up for Horton's dismissal at the start of the Leicestershire innings  from Smith's bowling and one that signalled the end for Lancashire after a promising start with the bat. Luke Procter followed soon after for 8 when he was bowled by Dexter at 104/4, the fourth wicket to fall for 30 runs in nine overs, as the top-order continued to falter.

England Lions batsman Liam Livingstone (28) showed eagerness to drag Lancashire out of the mire with his hard-hitting approach, adding 39 runs with Croft for the fifth wicket before he was caught behind off Dexter. Delport then claimed two wickets in successive deliveries, accounting for Croft and Clark (14) to leave Lancashire in a desperate position at 162/7.

Clark was victim off a smart catch by Horton in the deep and Croft (16) followed that up by playing on to Delport (2-41), with his side making a mess of chasing 308 in ever-fading light at Grace Road. With the tail struggling to find any motivation, the last five wickets fell for 14 runs in the space of 30 balls, as Lancashire failed to get anywhere near their target.

Klein (2-38) struck the first of two late blows when he bowled Parry for 4, while Dexter cemented his career-best figures of 4-22 in seven overs when he bowled Jarvis for a duck. Leicestershire then secured their first List A victory for nearly two years when Moores (10) drilled a drive into the hands of Cosgrove in the covers, handing the Foxes a crushing margin of victory by 131 runs.

Preview: Leicestershire Foxes v Lancashire Lightning - RLODC

Lancashire Lightning return to 50-over cricket in the Royal London One-Day Cup on Tuesday, naming a 13-man squad for their upcoming game against Leicestershire Foxes at Grace Road.

Ashley Giles' side have won just one of four matches in the 50-over competition this season - their opening game against Warwickshire - and since then Lancashire have endured an indifferent run of form. A record-breaking defeat against rivals Yorkshire at Old Trafford, which was Lancashire's last game in the campaign, saw the White Rose walk away with a 242-run victory.

Before that, a washout at Blackpool and another humbling defeat at Northampton means that Lancashire will need to assemble a late resurgence in their remaining three group matches in order to qualify for the knockout stages. Fortunately, the Lightning will face up against the only side in either group who are yet to register a win in the 50-over format this summer in Leicestershire.

The two teams met recently in the T20 contest, with Alviro Petersen scoring an unbeaten century in a losing cause at Grace Road. With both of these sides on the brink of Twenty20 elimination, advancing further in the remaining white-ball format would be a consolation for inconsistency in the Blast.

The Foxes enter this game on the back of a thrashing at the hands of Yorkshire on Sunday, a game that saw Travis Head and Jack Leaning both hit centuries in a 191-run win for the Tykes. Chasing a mammoth target of 377 from 50 overs, Leicester were dismissed for 185 inside 34 overs, putting Yorkshire top of the group. 

Lancashire will be hoping that Petersen can continue his incredible run of form in white-ball cricket this season, with the South-African scoring 341 runs in his last six T20 innings for the Red Rose at an average of 85.25. Luke Procter has also been a dependable contributor with the bat in the One-Day Cup this season to date, registering two fifties in three innings, including a highest score of 63 not out against Nottinghamshire Outlaws in the washout at Blackpool.

England Lions duo Liam Livingstone and Saqib Mahmood have both been named in the squad for the trip to Leicester, with both players enjoying good form in recent appearances for Lancashire and England. Mahmood starred with three important wickets in the recent win against Durham Jets in the T20 contest, while Livingstone scored 64 in his most recent innings for the Lions side in their triangular series with Pakistan and Sri Lanka. 

Both Procter and Tom Smith warmed up for the game against Leicestershire on Tuesday by hitting centuries for the Second Eleven against Worcestershire on Monday.

Leicestershire 14-man squad: Mark Pettini (c), Kevin O'Brien, Mark Cosgrove, Paul Horton, Lewis Hill, Niall O'Brien, Cameron Delport, Neil Dexter, Ned Eckersley, Michael Burgess, Clint McKay, Ollie Freckingham, Rob Sayer, Dieter Klein.

Lancashire 13-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Karl Brown, Nathan Buck, Jordan Clark, Kyle Jarvis, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Moores (wk), Stephen Parry, Alviro Petersen, Luke Procter, Tom Smith.

Lancashire edge Durham in tense game at Chester-le-Street

Reigning champions Lancashire Lightning edged a thrilling contest at Chester-le-Street to beat Durham Jets by four runs in the NatWest T20 Blast.

Lancashire set their hosts a steep target of 177 to win after Alviro Petersen (42) and Karl Brown (41) set a strong platform with a 68-run stand, before an unbroken partnership worth 71 runs between Liam Livingstone (43*) and captain Steven Croft (24*) propelled the visitors to 176/3.

Saqib Mahmood then starred with the ball, claiming key wickets in his figures of 3-31 to restrict the Jets to 172/5. Although Lancashire appear to be heading out of this year's campaign, this victory does give them a fleeting chance of scraping through, although they will have to beat Birmingham Bears in their final North Group game and rely on other results.

Durham did have a chance of claiming victory heading into the depths of the match after Callum MacLeod hit 45 from 31 balls and captain Mark Stoneman (36) had put the Jets in a good position at the start of their chase, but three wickets in four balls for Mahmood made scoring nearly three runs per ball too great of a task.

Paul Coughlin (26*) and Keaton Jennings (21*) added an unbroken stand worth 48 runs for the sixth wicket to take Durham closer than they might have got at one stage, but Lancashire held their nerve to secure their fifth win of the campaign and end Durham's unbeaten home record in the Blast this season.

In hindsight, the decision to put Lancashire into bat first did seem a strange one, but a powerplay score of 36/1 certainly vindicated Stoneman's logic. The ball was not coming onto the bat on a sluggish wicket and the early dismissal of Luis Reece for 14 did not help Lancashire's progress in the first six overs when he edged Coughlin (1-30) behind at 35/1.

However, Petersen and Brown began to hit their straps, starting the seventh over with a boundary apiece to help give the visitors some momentum. Brown continued to pick the gaps, crunching a superb boundary off the back foot through mid-wicket, while Petersen assisted with another solid innings for the Lightning.

Petersen has now scored 341 runs in his last six T20 innings for Lancashire at an average of 85.25, following his unbeaten 103 against Leicestershire in the previous match, helping to add a fifty-partnership inside seven overs with Brown. Lancashire's No.3 hit three boundaries in as many deliveries off Usman Arshad (1-43) to take the score beyond 100, before Petersen edged Arshad behind to Phil Mustard for 42 at 103/2.

Having added 68 runs together for the second wicket, Brown and Petersen were both dismissed in the space of four balls when Brown (41 off 26) was trapped lbw after missing a sweep off Scott Borthwick (1-25). Lancashire did slow down after these two quick wickets, but Livingstone and Croft were quick to put the visitors back on course to make the most of the foundation set by Petersen and Brown.

Boundaries continued to come regularly for the skipper and Livingstone - who made his England Lions debut this week - with the latter favouring a plethora of ramp shots to make the most of the lack of fielders behind square. Timing the ball continued to be difficult, but Livingstone hit a flat six in the 18th over to keep the momentum going towards the end of the innings.

A reverse ramp profited another boundary for Livingstone in the following over, as Lancashire added 71 runs in 40 balls for the unbroken fourth-wicket stand to finish on 176/3. Durham then found life similarly tough in the opening six overs, losing Mustard (8) in the fourth over when a slower ball from Jordan Clark (1-44) forced him to sky his shot into the gloves of Tom Moores at 18/1. 

Nathan Buck hampered Durham's progress inside the powerplay, conceding only 13 runs from his first three overs, before skipper Stoneman relieved the pressure that was building with two huge sixes over mid-wicket off Clark to earn 15 runs off the final over of the powerplay. Lancashire adopted their usual ploy of bowling spin in the middle overs to keep Durham in check and a key breakthrough came with Croft's second ball of the game when he bowled his Durham counterpart for 36 at 63/2.

Durham started to fall behind in their pursuit of 177 to win, although 14 runs from Luis Reece's first and only over - one the started with five wides - did help matters. MacLeod emerged as the next crucial wicket for Lancashire to take and, sure enough, Mahmood excelled with the ball in his first Twenty20 game of the season.

The England Lions paceman responded well after being ramped by MacLeod (45) with an inch-perfect yorker that removed the off-stump, before striking again two balls later to remove Ryan Pringle for a duck in identical fashion. Two quick wickets left Durham facing an uphill struggle, requiring 62 to win from the final five overs to record what would have been a crucial victory in their bid to reach the knockout stages.

After removing Pringle with the final ball of his second over, Mahmood claimed his third wicket in four balls when he had Gordon Muchall bowled for 22 to give him figures of 3-15 from his first three overs. At 124/4, Lancashire were now firm favourites to secure a fifth T20 win in what has been an inconsistent season for the defending champions, but they were taken to the wire by an unbroken partnership worth 48 runs between Coughlin (26*) and Jennings (21*). 

Jennings crunched a six over square leg before being dropped in the deep by Livingstone and Coughlin played his part with a maximum of his own to tarnish Mahmood's figures somewhat. However, Buck kept it tight in the final over, with Durham needing 18 from six balls for victory. The hosts needed 12 from from two balls, but a front-foot no-ball momentarily opened the door for Durham, who needed six runs from the last ball to tie the match.

Scoring two runs from the last ball, Durham fell five runs short of their target of 177, as Lancashire moved off the bottom of the North Group ahead of the final group game against Birmingham next Friday at Old Trafford.

Preview: Durham Jets v Lancashire Lightning - NatWest T20 Blast

Lancashire Lightning have named a 13-man squad for their trip to Chester-le-Street where they will take on Durham Jets in the NatWest T20 Blast on Friday evening.

The reigning champions have all-but been eliminated from this year's campaign following the latest of seven defeats against Leicestershire, despite an unbeaten century for Alviro Petersen. The South-African batsman registered Lancashire's highest individual score of 103* at Grace Road last Friday, but a nine-run defeat left Ashley Giles' side on the brink of elimination.

Durham, who are still able to qualify from the North Group, handed Lancashire their second defeat in as many matches back at the start of the campaign in late May, winnings by six wickets on the road at Old Trafford. The sides met in the County Championship last week at Southport, with Durham once again claiming the bragging rights with an enthralling two-wicket win at Trafalgar Road, despite the best efforts of Tom Smith with the ball on the final day.

Petersen, who has scored 299 runs in his last five innings for Lancashire in Twenty20 cricket, became the fourth person to hit a century in the shortest format for the Red Rose last week, the first hundred by a Lancashire player in T20 cricket for eight seasons.

Liam Livingstone returns to the Lancashire side after missing the Southport trip with England Lions duty, while Saqib Mahmood could be handed his first T20 appearance this season, given Lancashire's position at the bottom of the North Group. 

Durham squad: TBC

Lancashire 13-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Karl Brown, Nathan Buck, Jordan Clark, George Edwards, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Moores (wk), Stephen Parry, Alviro Petersen, Luke Procter, Luis Reece.

Durham edge Southport thriller despite Smith burst for Lancashire

Durham won by the narrow margin of two wickets on an enthralling final day at Southport, with Tom Smith collecting superb figures of 5-25 from 16 overs in a losing cause.

Keaton Jennings (82) and Jack Burnham (52) added 123 runs for the third wicket to put Durham comfortably ahead in their pursuit of 247 runs to win at Trafalgar Road, but a superb spell from Smith in the afternoon session saw Durham stumble to 170/2 to 195/7.

It was then up to England's Ben Stokes (36) and youngster Adam Hickey (21*) to secure a tense win on a scorching hot day, with this victory pushing Durham into second in the first division after inflicting a second defeat on Lancashire in red-ball cricket this season, as the Red Rose were ultimately made to pay the price for being dismissed for 204 in their first innings.

Lancashire made the ideal start to the final day when Kyle Jarvis (1-48) had Mark Stoneman out lbw for one with the sixth ball of the day, but Jennings continued to anchor the run-chase perfectly. Initially finding company in Durham's top-scorer from the first innings, Scott Borthwick, Jennings was content to give Jarvis respect, while Nathan Buck faired much worse from his only four overs of the game after stepping in for James Anderson.

Buck's figures of 0-26 included successive boundaries for Borthwick (28), shortly after Stoneman's dismissal, with Durham adding 41 runs for the second wicket. An incredible day for Smith started with a string of maidens, with this pressure eventually forcing Borthwick to edge a rising delivery to Alviro Petersen in the gully at 47/2.

This much-needed breakthrough changed the complexion of the game when lunch arrived, although Durham were still firm favourites to complete victory at 97/2, with Jennings and Burnham already adding fifty runs by the time the interval came. The fifty-partnership came from the final ball of the morning session and the Durham duo showed no sign of relenting in the baking heat.

Spin had been introduced at an early stage on the final day, with Lancashire hoping for a similar outcome the last time they came to Southport. Unfortunately for the Red Rose, the spinners were not able to extract prodigious turn on a regular basis, with only the odd ball causing the batting side any trouble.

Smith, who would later give Lancashire a genuine chance of forcing victory, did drop two catches off Simon Kerrigan to remove Burnham either side of lunch, while Jennings progressed to fifty for the eighth time this season in 104 balls. Steven Croft brought himself into the attack to try and force a breakthrough, but Burnham ended the Lancashire skipper's first over with the first of two sixes to be hit by the 19-year-old on his way to a 129-ball half-century.

Durham continued to score freely after lunch, with Burnham smashing Kerrigan back over his head for another maximum, allowing the third-wicket partnership to add one-hundred runs in 204 balls. Having endured a frustrating day for no reward, Kerrigan (1-97) finally had his man, as a quicker delivery hit Burnham on the toe and he fell lbw for 52 to signal a devastating collapse from the visitors.

The introduction of Smith proved crucial for Lancashire, as Durham slipped from 170/2 to 195/7 in little more than 10 overs. At one stage Smith's figures read 5-16 from 12 overs, with his first breakthrough of a new spell accounting for the key man Jennings. The Durham opener skied an attempted pull shot, forcing Tom Moores to take a smart catch staring into the sun to remove Jennings for 82, the second wicket to fall in five balls.

Smith struck again in his next over to remove Michael Richardson (3), with Smith and Moores teaming up again with a tickle down the leg-side at 175/5. After taking three wickets for five runs in the space of 19 balls, Lancashire had managed to extract a route back into a game that ebbed and flowed since the start, but the key to securing victory would lie with the success or failure of two England all-rounders, past and present.

Veteran skipper Paul Collingwood (4) failed to make the most of being given a life by Croft after being dropped at short-leg when he was Smith's next victim, falling lbw at 183/6, but Stokes was determined to return to the Test side on a high, relieving the ensuing pressure by dispatching a half-tracker from Kerrigan out of the ground for six.

The Smith-Moores combination handed the Lancashire all-rounder his fifth and final wicket of the innings and a seventh five-wicket haul in his first-class career, as Paul Coughlin (5) forced a brilliant one-handed diving catch from Moores to leave the Red Rose needing three more wickets to win. With Lancashire in the ascendancy, tea certainly came at a good time for Durham, with the visitors needing  50 runs to win at the start of the final session of the match.

Stokes and Hickey were offered relative freedom, as they edged their way close to victory by picking up singles and rotating the strike. They did also look to finish with a flourish, as Hickey (21*) followed up two boundaries off Smith with a huge six off Jarvis, one that landed on the roof of the pavilion to take Durham within 18 runs of victory.

Not to be outdone, Stokes hit three sixes in quick succession during his innings of 36 from 43 balls, with Lancashire offering muted celebrations at his dismissal when he was run out at 243/8. Chris Rushworth completed the job by creaming Jarvis through the covers for a boundary, as Durham moved up to second in Division One by inflicting a second four-day defeat on Lancashire.

Procter ton sets up final-day run chase for Durham at Southport

Luke Procter (122) scored a vital hundred on a sun-bathed third day to keep Lancashire alive and set up a thrilling run chase on the final day in their Specsavers County Championship match against Durham at Southport.

Procter's second century of the season helped the Red Rose to post 333 in their second innings, after he had shared a partnership with Haseeb Hameed (53) worth 114 runs for the second wicket and 70 runs with loan-signing Tom Moores (35) to set Durham 247 to win the match on the fourth day.

Hameed's sixth fifty of the summer allowed Lancashire to recover after they had surrendered a first-innings lead of 87 runs yesterday evening, before Procter's marathon innings ensured that Lancashire were able to post a respectable lead and leave all results possible heading into the last day of the match.

After losing Tom Smith cheaply yesterday evening, Hameed and Procter had already established an important partnership worth 56 runs in 20 overs to take Lancashire to within 28 runs of Durham's lead. The pair continued to resist an imposing Durham bowling attack, bolstered by the likes of Ben Stokes, who was recalled to the England Test side today.

Lancashire were forced to endure a wicketless first hour on the second day at Trafalgar Road and the Red Rose repaid the favour by keeping Durham at bay, courtesy of another defiant innings from their teenage opening batsman and a vastly-improved Procter. Hameed took 14 runs - including three boundaries - from a single over off Graham Onions to put Lancashire into the lead in the morning session, reaching his half-century in 107 deliveries with seven boundaries.

Hameed and Procter had batted untroubled for the majority of the opening session until the former fell for 53 to superb delivery from Stokes, one that climbed late on Hameed and took the edge through to the substitute fielder, Jeremy Benton, at second slip to leave the score at 117/2. Procter followed Hameed's example by reaching fifty in 137 balls, hoping to find long-term support from Alviro Petersen (17), but the South-African fell in the final over before lunch.

Petersen was trapped lbw on the back-foot by Scott Borthwick (3-98) to take the hosts to 161/3 at the interval, with Steven Croft adopting the anchor role to Procter's defiant innings. There was a serious let-off shortly after lunch when Croft found himself stranded halfway down the wicket, but Durham were unable to complete a routine run out to give the Lancashire skipper a life.

Croft (20) failed to capitalise on his stroke of luck, offering Adam Hickey (2-37) his maiden first-class scalp when he chipped a tame stroke to Borthwick at mid-wicket. Hickey struck again three overs later with Lancashire's lead at 122, when an inside-edge from Karl Brown (5) looped up to Keaton Jennings at short-leg.

Procter was in danger of finding himself isolated at the crease, given that his remaining company consisted of first-class debutant Moores and a four-man strong tail, but the Nottinghamshire and England Under-19 wicketkeeper represented his adopted county with gritty determination in testing circumstances. 

Moores settled any early nerves with a handsome straight six off Borthwick, while Procter negated the new ball to progress to his second century of the season in 235 balls to help take Lancashire to 246/5 at tea, with a lead of 159 runs. Procter departed shortly after the interval after being caught well at leg-slip by Jack Burnham off Borthwick for 122, a breakthrough that caused Lancashire to wobble in the evening session.

Durham claimed three wickets in 12 balls when Moores was run out for 35 following miscommunication with Kyle Jarvis, who was then out for no score himself when he was cleanly bowled by Borthwick at 286/8. Simon Kerrigan (19) and Nathan Buck then added a useful partnership worth 27 runs to bolster Lancashire's lead and occupy the crease into the depths of the evening session.

Kerrigan's resistance was thwarted by Stokes, who collected figures of 3-50 when the tail-ender was caught behind by Michael Richardson attempting to turn the ball into the leg-side. With Lancashire leading by 226 runs, Buck smashed a quickfire 27 from 46 balls, hitting Borthwick for two sixes either side of a boundary to push the lead towards 250.

Buck clobbered a half-tracker over square leg, before dispatching a huge six over mid-wicket to improve Lancashire's chances of being able to force a positive result on the final day. Matthew Parkinson (0) could only fend a Stokes bouncer to Burnham at short-leg, as Lancashire set Durham 247 to win the match after being dismissed for 333 in their second innings.

Defiant Collingwood puts Durham in charge at Southport

Durham skipper Paul Collingwood (50) made a vital half-century to steer his side into the lead against Lancashire on the second day of the Specsavers County Championship match at Southport.

The former England all-rounder helped Durham towards a first-innings lead of 87 runs after they posted 291 in reply to Lancashire's 204. Scott Borthwick threatened to record three centuries in as many innings this season against the Red Rose, top-scoring with 64, before Collingwood and Paul Coughlin (26) added 71 runs to frustrate the hosts in the afternoon session.

Having entered this match on the back of a thumb injury, the Durham captain was taken off the field yesterday when a dropped catch caused him to split the webbing in his hand. Despite fears over whether or not the county veteran would be able to bat at all, he stood firm to resist James Anderson (3-58) long enough to secure a useful lead in a low-scoring contest at Trafalgar Road.

Starting their second innings on the back-foot, Lancashire lost Tom Smith cheaply in the fourth over of the innings, but Haseeb Hameed (24*) and Luke Procter (21*) added an unbeaten partnership worth 56 runs to take the Red Rose to 59/1 at stumps, trailing Durham by 28 runs.

Late wickets from Luke Procter yesterday evening had restored Lancashire's position in the match after Mark Stoneman (41) and overnight batsman Borthwick had carted the seamers in the final session to put a sizeable dent in Lancashire's humble first-innings total. Steven Croft instilled a great deal of faith in Procter for the first hour of the day, which he repaid by bowling a nagging line and length to offer the hosts their best chance of a breakthrough in what proved to be a wicketless first hour.

Vying to play a part in the Second Test at Old Trafford, Ben Stokes became engaged in a heated battle with Anderson during his first spell of the day, with Anderson dropping the dangerous all-rounder off Procter when he was on 8, an error that allowed Stokes (21) and Borthwick to add 43 runs for the fourth wicket.

Borthwick advanced from his overnight score of 37 to reach fifty for the fifth time this season in 109 balls. His back-to-back centuries in the reverse-fixture at Chester-le-Street had helped Durham to inflict Lancashire's first defeat of the season and - with a point to prove after the lack of interest shown by the international selectors - Borthwick casually demonstrated his usefulness as a top-order batsman on a threatening pitch.

After enduring a luckless first hour, the introduction of 19-year-old leg-break bowler Matthew Parkinson proved to be decisive, as he had Stokes caught and bowled with his very first ball of the game. Stokes came down the pitch, attempting to pad the ball back to the Bolton-born bowler, but the ball looped off his bat and into the hands of a jubilant Parkinson, who accounted for another of England's esteemed batsman, after he removed Jonathan Trott for his maiden first-class scalp against Warwickshire last month.

After watching Lancashire's emerging young spinner claim the first breakthrough of the day, the senior spinner produced a quality delivery to remove Borthwick for 64, forcing his way through bat and pad to bowl the overnight batsman at 149/5, the second wicket to fall in 22 balls. 

Michael Richardson's quick-fire innings of 28 from 25 balls featured five boundaries and Lancashire were glad to see the back of the wicketkeeper in the final over before lunch, when a lose shot off Kyle Jarvis (2-89) took the edge through to Tom Moores to signal the end of the morning session at 169/6. With a slender lead of 35 runs at the break, Lancashire were hopeful that they could claim the last four wickets cheaply, but a 71-run stand between Collingwood and Coughlin ensured that Durham built a handsome lead.

Collingwood enjoyed the contest with Anderson, dispatching the new ball for an enormous six into the leg-side with a shot that forced the umpires to fetch another new ball. Anderson didn't appreciate being clobbered in front of his home fans and he retaliated with a bouncer that nearly caught Collingwood off guard, but the Durham captain stood firm in his resistance.

Lancashire claimed a much-needed breakthrough when Jarvis had Coughlin bowled for 26 in his third over with the new cherry and Anderson had Adam Hickey caught smarty caught behind by Moores for no score in the following over to leave the score at 241/8. Collingwood went to a pivotal half-century in 101 balls, but the captain was out three balls later when Moores was once again called into action behind the stumps with an impressive take to hand Anderson his third scalp of the innings.

With Durham's lead already at 46 runs by the time the ninth wicket fell, Lancashire would have preferred to get one of Chris Rushworth (30) or Graham Onions (15*) out cheaply, but the Red Rose were forced to endure a frustrating last-wicket stand worth 41 runs to extend the lead to 87 runs by the time Durham had been dismissed for 291.

Rushworth's cavalier approach was rewarded with five boundaries, before he was the final man to fall when he picked out Procter at deep square-leg off Parkinson, who finished with 2-30 from nine overs. Having played his part in an important partnership with Rushworth, Onions presented Lancashire's openers a threatening opening spell in the second innings, with the pressure eventually telling in the fourth over.

After surviving an enthusiastic lbw shout two balls earlier, Smith edged an out-swinger behind to Richardson, following up his duck in the first innings with just a solitary run the second time around with the score at 3/1. Lancashire could very easily have folded under the pressure that was upon them in the depths of the evening session, but Hameed and Procter were determined not to let that happen.

The pair added an unbroken partnership worth 56 runs in 20 overs, reaching the fifty-partnership in 95 balls in the closing stages of the day, with the home side trailing by 28 runs at the end of Day Two at Southport.

Durham enjoy better of opening day at Southport against Lancashire

Steven Croft and Alviro Petersen both made half-centuries for Lancashire on the opening day at Southport, but the hosts were put to task by Durham after they were bowled out for 204.

Petersen (51) continued his incredible form in all formats by registering his fourth fifty in red-ball cricket the day after he hit an unbeaten century in the Blast, with captain Croft top-scoring with 54 to rescue his side after they had fallen to 105/5 in the afternoon session.

A sturdy partnership for the third wicket between Luke Procter (30) and Petersen helped the Red Rose to add 66 runs either side of lunch, but a middle-order collapse allowed Durham to restrict their hosts to a modest first-innings score after winning the toss and electing to bat first. In reply, the visitors posted 88/3, with Mark Stoneman (41) and Scott Borthwick (37*) taking Lancashire's lead to 116 runs.

Tom Smith fell for a duck to the sixth ball of the day when a rising delivery from Chris Rushworth (4-30) took the edge of the bat and flew to Ben Stokes at third slip. Haseeb Hameed added 10 before he was caught by Keaton Jennings off Paul Coughlin (2-31) with Lancashire stumbling to 26/2 in the first hour. Rushworth's economical opening spell of seven overs saw the bowler record five maidens, with Lancashire making little progress against the new ball.

Hameed had earlier been dropped by Durham captain Paul Collingwood, who was forced to leave the field with split webbing, having entered this fixture on the back of a thumb injury. Petersen brought an excellent counterpunch to Durham's dominance in the morning session, pulling Coughlin for two boundaries in quick succession. He then took on young spinner Adam Hickey, advancing down the pitch to dispatch him over long-on for six, before hitting a perfectly-timed drive through the covers.

Procter and Petersen had added 55 runs by the time lunch arrived, but both batsmen were back in the pavilion shortly after the players returned for the afternoon session. Lancashire lost three wickets for eight runs in the space of 11 balls after the lunch interval, with Procter edging Coughlin behind to Michael Richardson the ball after he had been dropped at third slip by Stokes.

Petersen, who hit Lancashire's first century in T20 cricket for eight years at Grace Road yesterday, registered his fourth fifty in red-ball cricket in 67 balls, but the experienced batsman fell the next ball in disappointing fashion. Having escaped a potential catch at deep mid-wicket when he skied a mistimed pull shot, Petersen was then caught comfortably short of his ground attempting an ambitious second run to Jack Burnham, as he fell for 51 at 103/4.

Karl Brown edged an attempted drive off Graham Onions (1-49) into the hands of Jennings, who took a tumbling catch to give Durham their third breakthrough in quick succession. It could very easily have been 105/6 - and four wickets in 22 balls -when first-class debutant Tom Moores was dropped by Stokes, which caused the England all-rounder to throw the ball into the turf in disgust.

The young wicketkeeper batsman progressed well after being given an early life, helping Croft to add 41 runs for the sixth wicket in testing conditions. Moores hit two boundaries in quick succession on his way to 25, but Jennings had the debutant out with his fifth ball of the match, when Moores edged behind to Richardson at 146/6.

Croft attempted to relieve the pressure that was building on his side, rocking onto the back foot and launching Jennings for six into the leg-side, but wickets continued to fall at the other end, with Kyle Jarvis (2) offering Jennings his second breakthrough in the space of three overs with a routine return catch off his own bowling.

The Lancashire skipper was four runs short of a half-century at tea, but he struggled find long-term support from the tail, as Simon Kerrigan (11) started a purple patch for Rushworth with an edge behind to Richardson at 195/8. Croft's 91-ball fifty came as brief consolation to the captain, who was perfectly aware that his side were up against one of the most imposing bowling attacks in the country on a surface with variable bounce.

His determination was also hampered by the fact that the tail were dismantled by Rushworth, who finished with four wickets to his name when Matthew Parkinson was bowled for no score, before Croft was caught and bowled for 54 to end the innings at 204.

Lancashire were boosted by the availability of James Anderson, who is eligible to play in the first two days of this fixture before resting ahead of the Second Test against Pakistan at Old Trafford on July 22. The England seamer struck in his second over - his eighth ball of the game - removing Jennings with an unplayable delivery that climbed late and flew to Croft second slip.

Stoneman and Borthwick put on 69 runs for the second wicket at a good pace, taking a sizeable chunk out of Lancashire's humble total, but a dominant close of play scoreboard was altered by a late burst of wickets from Luke Procter (2-7). The all-rounder accounted for Stoneman with his fifth ball when he edged behind to Moores for 41, before striking two overs later to remove Burnham (7), edging to Croft to signal close of play.