Headingley is set to host a star-studded Roses clash between Yorkshire and Lancashire in the Natwest t20 Blast this Friday.
Jos Buttler has been confirmed to play for Lancashire, while the home side welcome the return of Joe Root, Gary Ballance and Adam Lyth from international duty.
Yorkshire also have the services of t20 superstar Glenn Maxwell and the home side will be hoping to continue their good start to the campaign after recording two victories from their first three matches.
Their roses rivals have experienced the opposite form in this competition, suffering defeats to Derbyshire and Durham since their victory over Leicestershire in the opening round of fixtures.
As is the case for any roses encounter, this match is not just about who can win in order to improve their standing in the league table. Travelling to Yorkshire and entering enemy territory means that to walk away with anything other than victory is terribly disappointing.
James Faulkner has also been named in Lancashire's squad for this match and he will hoping to deliver a big performance after he hit a century on his Championship debut against Surrey at The Oval this week.
Lancashire are hoping to register their first t20 victory at Headingley since 2009 a run of five matches at this ground without a win. Out of those five matches, Yorkshire have won three, with one tie and the most recent trip to West Yorkshire ending in a washout.
The last time these rivals met at Old Trafford, Yorkshire edged a narrow five-wickt victory after Aaron Finch hit 88 from 55 balls to guide the Vikings to their target of 180. Yorkshire's last t20 outing saw them suffer their first defeat of the campaign to Durham, who are top of the North Group.
The Lightning also tasted defeat in their last t20 game, suffering a humbling defeat against Derbyshire as Hashim Amla guided the Falcons to victory in his final game before departing.
Key Players:
Glenn Maxwell can be hit and miss in this format, but when he gets it right he can be destructive. The last time he played against Lancashire he was in Hampshire's ranks and he hit 146 in 118 balls in the Royal London One-Day Cup. The Australian all-rounder is due a match-winning performance after a humble start to the campaign, recording scores of 20 and 8 in his only two innings to date.
His record as a twenty20 cricketer has seen him play in the Indian Premier League and Big Bash tournaments, representing Kings XI Punjab and Melbourne Stars in the most recent franchise campaigns. He has a modest average for someone so talented of 21.43 in this format, with a highest score of 95 off 43 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
James Faulkner has demonstrated what he is capable of with the bat this week, but the World-Cup winning all-rounder is yet to exhibit his ability to rip through a side, or even claim his first wicket for Lancashire. The stage is set for the Australian to make a name for himself in Roses folklore and he will be hoping to replicate the success of countryman Aaron Finch when he played against Lancashire at Old Trafford last summer.
His innings of 121 runs was incredibly important, given that Lancashire had stumbled to 108/6 against Surrey, but Faulkner showed his talent to dispatch red and white ball alike as he and Jordan Clark guided the Red Rose to safety. Faulkner has played in 111 twenty20 matches in his career and although he is yet to register a fifty in this format, his ability to make an impact with bat and ball will make him a vital component to Lancashire's campaign.
The Vikings welcome the return of England trio Gary Ballance, Joe Root and Adam Lyth into an already commanding squad. Wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow hit a half-century in the Emirates Airline tournament against Lancashire the last time these sides met in Dubai.
Yorkshire 14-man squad: Andrew Gale (c), Jonny Bairstow (w/k), Gary Ballance, Tim Bresnan, Jack Brooks, Matthew Fisher, Jack Leaning, Alex Lees, Adam Lyth, Glenn Maxwell, Liam Plunkett, Richard Pyrah, Adil Rashid, Joe Root.
The visitors are without club captain Tom Smith, who has failed to recover from the back injury which has kept him on the sidelines for most of the season. He has been playing for the Second XI but is yet to make a full recovery. International expertise in the form of Buttler and Faulkner should give Lancashire the firepower they need to compete with a talented Yorkshire squad.
Lancashire 14-man squad: Steven Croft (c), Tom Bailey, Karl Brown, Jos Buttler, Jordan Clark, Alex Davies (w/k), George Edwards, James Faulkner, Paul Horton, Arron Lilley, Liam Livingstone, Stephen Parry, Ashwell Prince, Rob Jones.
Match information:
Weather and conditions: This time last year the two sides sat frustrated in the dressing room as heavy and persistent rain forced the game to be abandoned, but the weather for this evening is pleasant and sunny and so no such delays are expected.
Ground: Headingley
Start time: 6.30pm
Umpires: Rob Bailey, Neil Mallinder
Match odds (Sky Bet): Yorkshire 8/13, Lancashire 5/4
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