Durham’s winning start in the T20 Blast comes to an end with a 59-run defeat to Yorkshire at Banks Homes Riverside.
Spin prospered, especially in the chase, as only one batter from either side – Yorkshire’s James Wharton with a superb 64 off 41 balls – posted a half-century.
The White Rose totalled 151 for nine, which proved insurmountable for Durham who fell to a first defeat in three.
Durham, for whom David Bedingham made a pleasing 41 after Matthew Potts and Kasey Aldridge had struck three times each, subsided to 93 all out inside 17 overs as Hassan Ali and spinners Moeen Ali and Dom Bess all struck twice.
Potts and Callum Parkinson struck with seam and spin to leave Yorkshire at nine for two in the third over. Adam Lyth miscued to midwicket against Potts, Luxton played on slog-sweeping at Parkinson.
From the evidence of the women’s afternoon game – Warwickshire failing to chase 141 on a slow and low pitch – this game was likely to be low-scoring.
Up until late in the 10th over, Yorkshire had only scored two boundaries as Jonny Bairstow and Wharton tried to recover.
Bairstow crashed back-to-back off-side sixes against Nathan Sowter’s leg-spin just before the halfway mark. But Durham reasserted their authority when Aldridge had Bairstow caught at deep midwicket for 43 at the end of the 12th.
Aldridge also had Moeen Ali caught at cover at the start of the 14th, leaving the score at 89 for four, and he was on a hat-trick.
Wharton reached his 37-ball fifty.
But Ben Raine bowled him on the reverse before Pakistani overseas duo Faheem Ashraf and Hassan Ali holed out off Aldridge and Raine – 129 for seven in the 18th over.
Matthew Revis clubbed a late 19 but fell as one of two wickets for Potts off the last two balls of the innings.
But Durham’s chase was unlikely to be a walk in the park, a theory strengthened when openers Graham Clark and Alex Lees holed out to Hassan and Faheem – 10 for two in the second over.
Ollie Robinson was run out by a direct hit from Moeen at mid-off not long afterwards before Hassan bowled Colin Ackermann as Durham ended the powerplay on 41.
Bedingham started nicely. One straight drive off Hassan was particularly memorable. Though, he needed some assistance.
He looked like he might be finding it from Will Rhodes, only to fall himself against Moeen’s off-spin, caught brilliantly by a diving Revis running to his right from long-off.
Rhodes holed out to Bess’s off-spin not long after, and it was death by spin for Durham, who were 66 for six in the 11th over.
Spinners Moeen, Bess and Jafer Chohan all then struck as Durham subsided to 70 for nine in the 14th over before Potts was later run out going for a second to seal the four points for the White Rose.