Lancashire Lightning 199/5, Durham 193/5
Finn Allen’s explosive 66 set Lancashire up for a thrilling six-run Vitality Blast win over Durham at Emirates Old Trafford which keeps them on track for the quarter-finals.
The New Zealand opener dominated as the Lightning raced to 75 without loss in six overs. He reached 50 off 21 balls in 199 for five, also including 56 for Alex Davies.
Durham, now out of contention with this defeat, raced to 78 without loss after six overs in reply as David Bedingham made 50 off 24.
Later, Sean Dickson’s 53 off 33 took the target to 15 off the last over, which Danny Lamb defended as the visitors finished on 193 for five. A Lancashire home win over Yorkshire in their final North Group fixture tomorrow will secure qualification.
Allen crashed eight fours and three sixes in 28 balls. His 21-ball fifty was one slower than Jos Buttler’s Lightning record.
Bedingham later followed suit to give Durham hope of securing their record chase. But he was one of two wickets in the ninth over for left-arm spinner Tom Hartley as they fell to 96 for three.
Powerful Allen, 22, was strong ‘in the v’ as he shared 101 in 8.1 overs with Jennings after Lightning captain Dane Vilas had won the toss.
Jennings – with 43 – and Davies provided excellent support to give Lancashire a stronghold at the halfway mark.
Scott Borthwick was the pick Durham’s bowlers with two for 30 with his leg-spin. He had Allen caught at long-off to break the opening stand and Jennings caught at short fine-leg sweeping.
Durham raced out of the blocks in reply, bettering Lancashire in the power play by three runs at 78 without loss.
South African Bedingham, like Allen earlier, was strong down the ground. Graham Clark played the support role in their 88-run opening stand and made 37.
But momentum swung back towards the Lightning in the space of two overs.
Clark found long-on off Steven Croft’s off-spin in the eighth before Hartley had Bedingham caught at short third-man off a miscue in the ninth, shortly followed by Cameron Bancroft’s wicket – 96 for three.
Dickson kept the game very much alive. By the time he had reached 40, Durham were 158 for four after 17, needing 38 more.
He holed out off Luke Wood at the end of the 19th over, leaving Brydon Carse and Ben Raine with a task that was just too tall.