A stand of 113 in 20 overs between Darren Lehmann and Craig White laid the platform for Yorkshire Phoenix to win a tense day/night thriller against Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Trent Bridge by three wickets with just four balls to spare
Dave Bracegirdle13-Aug-2001A stand of 113 in 20 overs between Darren Lehmann and Craig White laid the platform for Yorkshire Phoenix to win a tense day/night thriller against Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Trent Bridge by three wickets with just four balls to spare.The win broke a sequence of three successive defeats against the Outlaws in the national cricket league but they had to survive a few anxious moments before confirming the win which lifts them to within two points of Notts in fifth place in the Division One table.Lehmann’s partnership with White began with the Phoenix reply in ruins at 31-4 with Greg Smith and Nadeem Malik sharing the wickets.Batting under lights is never easy but for a 20-minute spell the two batsmen also had to contend with the off field distraction of smoke billowing from underneath the William Clarke Stand when the cooking range in one of the refreshment kiosks caught fire. The ringing of alarms, the arrival of the fire engines plus tannoy announcements to vacate the area would have tested the concentration of anyone.Lehmann proceeded to his 50 from 52 balls and White from 53 as they threatened to overhaul the useful Notts total. If anyone on the field would have wanted to dismiss Lehmann it would have been his great friend and South Australian team-mate Greg Blewett and it was he who had cause for celebration when he knocked back the left-handers off stump.White, though, found his new partner, skipper David Byas, in inspired form. His timing was immaculate from the off and his punchy midwicket drives propelled a 50 partnership in just eight overs.61 runs were needed from the last 10 overs and sensible strokeplay reduced that to 33 from six when Byas hoisted Gareth Clough to deep square leg where Paul Johnson took a well-judged catch.Two balls later the ground erupted for a catch of supreme athleticism. White, who’d made 73, slashed the same bowler powerfully to point. Kevin Pietersen threw his 6’5″ to his right to pluck a one handed catch inches from the ground. A better catch you will never see!Yorkshire weren’t finished though as Richard Blakey and Andy Gray scrambled ever closer and in a dramatic penultimate over 12 runs were scored to bring them within four of victory. Blakey drove Richard Logan to the extra cover boundary for the winning runs.Earlier there had been useful contributions from all of the Outlaws’ top six. Usman Afzaal top scored with 53 and both Blewett and Pietersen got into the 40’s as the home side reached 244-7 in their 45 overs.
