• Friends Life t20 round-up

Nottinghamshire thrash Leicestershire in T20 opener

ESPN staff
June 12, 2012
Steve Mullaney took a career-best four for 19 © PA Photos
Enlarge

Leicestershire were bowled out for 96 in a calamitous start to the defence of their Friends Life t20 title against Nottinghamshire at Grace Road.

It was the Foxes' lowest ever score in a competition they have won three times, and the Outlaws romped to victory by six wickets with seven overs to spare.

Former Foxes star, James Taylor, clinched the win by hitting 16 off six balls, with four boundaries in an over off Wayne White.

Outlaws seamer Steve Mullaney claimed career-best Twenty20 figures of four for 19 off his four overs, picking up the wickets of Ramnaresh Sarwan, Matt Boyce, Kadeer Ali and Rob Taylor.

Although the pitch always had something in it for the bowlers, it was a disappointing performance by the Foxes, who were dismissed in just 17.3 overs after being put into bat. The hosts lost their last five wickets for 31 runs as they fell well short of posting anything like a competitive target.

Sarwan and Wayne White top-scored with 13 each, and the extras column also added another 13 runs.

Opener Josh Cobb looked in good form when he struck two successive fours off Darren Pattinson, only to be bowled by the next delivery. That set the tone of the Foxes innings.

Jacques du Toit was lbw playing across the line and both Sarwan and Boyce popped up easy return catches to Mullaney.

Abdul Razzaq never settled and was trapped lbw by Samit Patel for five, and although White hit the left-arm spinner for six he was then bowled by the next ball as the wickets continued to tumble.

Adam Voges finished things off by dismissing Claude Henderson and Matthew Hoggard to claim his first wickets in the competition for the Outlaws, and leave his side with an easy target to chase.

Hoggard picked up the early wickets of Alex Hales and Riki Wessels, but there was never any danger of the Outlaws missing out and Michael Lumb (25 not out) and Taylor saw them safely over the line with little trouble after handy contributions from Voges and Patel.

The South Group got off to a soggy start at Canterbury when the opening game between Kent and Sussex was abandoned without a ball bowled. Both sides take one point and Sussex hope to get their campaign under way on Thursday against Hampshire at Hove. Kent's opening game is now on Sunday against Surrey at Beckenham.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close