Lancashire climb above Durham with tense three-wicket Vitality Blast victory

The Herald Scotland

13-07-2025

Colin Ackermann top-scored with 42 as Durham limped to 155 from their 20 overs but they would have been happy to have England pair Phil Salt and Jos Buttler back in the shed early in the chase at 42 for two.
The game remained in the balance as Lancs continued to plug away at the runs but Durham in turn took wickets at regular intervals courtesy of Callum Parkinson, Matthew Potts, James Neesham and Nathan Sowter but Green's match-winning 31 from 16 balls gave Lancashire victory.
Surrey earned a resounding 67-run victory over Somerset in a battle of the top two in the South Group.
They were forced to bat by Somerset but put on a pleasing display in the first innings. Will Jacks scored a half-century and fellow English pair Jason Roy and Dan Lawrence posted above 30 to help Surrey to 201 which Somerset did not make a mark on, being bowled out for 134.
Northamptonshire climbed to second in the North Group with a comprehensive 64-run win over fellow quarter-final chasers Warwickshire.
Matthew Breetzke clubbed 85 from 40 balls while David Willey and Ricardo Vasconcelos both struck half-centuries as the Steelbacks put a mammoth 240 on the board the halfway point.
Warwickshire openers Alex Davies and Tom Latham tried to get on top of the run rate but both succumbed in doing so. Sam Hain hit a half-century but in the end they fell way short of their target.
Northamptonshire earned a win over fellow quarter-final chasers Warwickshire (Mike Egerton/PA)
Hampshire all but secured their place in the knockouts with a six-wicket victory over Sussex, who saw their own hopes take a huge blow.
After Sussex posted 167 on the board, the Hawks were completely dominant with the bat thanks largely to James Vince who came two runs short of a century but was unbeaten on 98 from 49 balls which saw Hampshire home with 16 balls to spare.
Kent boosted their hopes of a top-four finish with a seven-wicket win over Middlesex.
Middlesex would have been questioning their decision to bat after Kane Williamson fell in the eighth over at 43 for three but Leus Du Plooy's 68 propelled them to 160.
However, Kent were always in control in their run chase. Tawanda Muyeye's 59 alongside solid scores from Harry Finch (36) and Joe Denly (46) moved Kent to fourth in the South Group.
Ethan Brookes scored a half-century to help steer Worcestershire to a six-wicket victory over Leicestershire.
Leicestershire posted 173 at the end of their 20 overs, Tom Taylor ripped through Worcestershire's top order but the hosts fought back courtesy of Ben Cox's unbeaten 70 from 44 balls which helped them post a defendable target.
However, Worcestershire were imperious in their run chase and posted over 50 in their first six overs. Tom Scriven aimed to pull Leicestershire back in the contest with the wickets of Brett D'Oliveira and Kashif Ali but Brookes' unbeaten 56 took Worcestershire to a sixth win of the campaign.
Glamorgan's hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals took a blow after they suffered a 40-run loss to lowly Gloucestershire.
Ben Charlesworth's 55 from 44 balls propelled Gloucestershire to 175 but Glamorgan never got going with their run chase and were reduced to 95 for five after 11 overs.
Marchant de Lange's four wickets helped limit Glamorgan who were bowled out for 135 after just 18.1 overs.
Derbyshire claimed an eight-wicket victory over fellow Blast strugglers Yorkshire at Headingley.
The Falcons put the home side on the back foot from the off as Allah Ghazanfar and Ben Aitchison claimed two wickets apiece to reduce Yorkshire to 17 for four but Dom Bess' half-century helped his side up to 150.
The run chase was a formality for Derbyshire. Aneurin Donald and Wayne Madsen went past 50 while Caleb Jewell remained unbeaten on 41 to help them to a win.