MATCH REPORT: Mitchell masterclass propels Lancashire to third Blast win

MATCH REPORT: Mitchell masterclass propels Lancashire to third Blast win

Daryl Mitchell made his second-highest T20 score of 85 not out as Lancashire racked up their highest total against the Outlaws on their way to a third 2023 Vitality Blast win by 22 runs.

The victory extended the Lightning’s remarkable unbeaten home run to 17 matches to cap an excellent start to the T20 campaign.

The Lightning’s 208-4 was led by Mitchell’s excellent half century and that was backed up by an good bowling performance with Luke Wood once again taking vital early wickets to finish with 2-29.

Phil Salt thrashed the first ball of the match from the Outlaws new overseas signing Shaheen Afridi for four with ten taken from the over to start the Lightning onslaught after Liam Livingstone had won the toss.

Luke Wells produced a 23-ball 38 that included a powerfully struck six over midwicket as the Lancashire openers made a lightning start with a 56-run partnership off 33 balls, ended when Wells snicked behind off loan signing Conor McKerr.

Samit Patel, hammered for 15 in his first over, returned after the powerplay ended to strike twice, Steven Croft slicing to point for 6 and Salt bowled for 34 off 24 balls to peg Lancashire back to 86-3 after ten overs.

Mitchell and Liam Livingstone swiftly rebuilt before accelerating the scoring through the second half of the innings taking just 29 balls to post their fifty partnership.

But the visitors did not help their cause dropping four catches, two of them costly misses.

The first – with Wells on 30 – had little impact but the Outlaws were left to rue three drops off Mitchell with the Kiwi on 7, 32 and 79.

Mitchell twice hit sixes the ball after he had been missed to deepen the visitors woe on his way to a 26-ball fifty that was a mixture of power and finesse.

Livingstone, in his first innings of the season for the Lightning, hammered Lyndon James through extra cover to open his boundary account before landing a pair of huge sixes onto the terracing in front of the new hotel off McKerr.

The Lightning skipper holed out to Hales at long-on off Afridi for 32 off 23 balls in the 18^th over but Mitchell took two more sixes off the Pakistan pace bowler in the 18^th to propel Lancashire over the 200-mark, finishing unbeaten on 85 off 41 balls.

Wood continued his fine T20 start, striking twice to take his tally to eight wickets in three matches and peg back the visitors as they set off in pursuit of their tough 209-run target.

The left-arm quick produced the perfect inswinging yorker to bowl Alex Hales for a second-ball duck and followed that with the wicket of Joe Clarke, caught at midwicket for 2, to make immediate inroads to the Outlaws top order.

Colin Munro and Matt Montgomery fought back splendidly with an attacking 78-run partnership that kept Notts well in contention.

New Zealand international Munro hammered five sixes and four fours in a 29-ball innings of 60 but having deposited Wells over the ropes for that fifth maximum, top edged a high catch off the next ball that was taken by wicketkeeper Salt midway between the two pairs of stumps.

That wicket proved to be crucial in turning an evenly balanced game Lancashire’s way.

Montgomery, who hit a debut fifty the previous evening against Derbyshire, continued the attack to reach an attractive 41 off 26 balls before he was run out, sent back after turning for a second run and beaten by Mitchell’s accurate throw from long-on to leave Notts 112-4 in the 12^th over.

Steven Mullaney hit three fours off Saqib Mahmood in the 16^th over before driving the bowler to Livingstone at mid-off having helped Moores add 49 in 5 overs to keep the Outlaws hopes just about alive with 48 required from 19 balls.

Despite Tom Moores’ valient unbeaten 41 and James thumping a late six, that quest proved to be out of Notts range as the Lightning attack closed out an excellent victory.

“I’m going to give you a boring answer,” dead-panned Daryl Mitchell when asked to rate Lancashire’s prospects in this season’s Vitality Blast after the Lightning’s perfect start.

“We’re taking it one game at a time,” smiled the Kiwi international.

 “It’s nice as a group to beat Notts who you would say are a top team in our division,” he added.

“It’s really nice to keep creating momentum as a group, put pressure on opposition and win moments. We did it again tonight.

“We’ve got an exciting group of guys who have been successful for a number of years in white ball cricket in this country. We’ll keep trying to do our jobs as individuals for this team, and hopefully that means we’re in the mix come the end of the competition.

“We have some players who have played all around the world and some world-class ones like Jos coming in. It’s an exciting time for this group. But we’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves.

“It was nice (batting). It was a lovely wicket out there and nice to work in partnerships with a number of guys. Liam Livingstone hitting the ball to the moon a couple of times was nice to see. We tried to put pressure back on them and not give them too many easy overs.

“It’s nice to contribute to the team, but one thing I’ve learnt over the years is that you never take anything for granted and stay as level as you can. You have to show up each day with a smile on your face and work hard to try and win moments for Lancashire.”

“Luke is on fire. He’s shaping the ball nicely and is asking questions of the batters early. When you have Saqib at the other end doing his thing, Ric Gleeson will be back at some point as well, it’s an exciting pace attack – he spin trio we have as well.”

Ken Grime
Photos: George Franks & Luke Adams