Adam Lyth posted the highest score in England’s T20 history as his 161 led Yorkshire to a 124-run win over Northamptonshire.
Yorkshire vs Northamptonshire
It was an evening of records at Headingley. Yorkshire posted 260-4 from their 20 overs, and with that came the joint-third highest total of all time, the third-best innings of all time, and the second-worst figures of all time. The victory over Northants puts them on the brink of reaching the quarter-finals.
Lyth, once a Test opener for England, tops the run-scoring charts in this season’s T20 Blast, thanks to a spectacular evening of fence-clearing, in which he struck seven sixes and 20 fours. His 161 came off 73 balls, and it was the highest T20 score in England, and the third-highest of all time, behind only Chris Gayle’s 175 and Hamilton Masakadza’s 162. The 260-4 has been bettered only by the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s 263-5 in that Gayle slog-fest, and Australia’s 263-3 against Sri Lanka last year.
Matters weren’t helped by Northants’ Ben Sanderson, who recorded the second-worst four-over spell in history with 0-77, only worsened by Sarmad Anwar’s 0-81 for the Stallions in Pakistan in 2011. Rory Kleinveldt was relatively economical given the circumstances, with 1-32 from his four overs. Richard Levi tried to bring the fight with his 65 off 32 balls in response, but it was too much for the rest of the team as they were bowled out for 136.
Leicestershire vs Derbyshire
Leicestershire and Derbyshire, meanwhile, both remain firmly in the running for a quarter-final spot in the North Group, as Leicestershire’s four-wicket victory leaves both sides on seven victories from their 13 matches.
Derbyshire posted 139-7, as Cameron Delport, usually known for his batting, put in an excellent shift with the ball for his 1-18 from his allotted overs. He couldn’t back that performance up with the bat, as he scored four, while Colin Ackermann was run out by Imran Tahir for five, but Mark Cosgrove’s 57 got them over the line with nine balls remaining. It was no fault of Tahir’s, who took impressive figures of 1-13 from his four.
Photo: Nigel Roddis/Getty Images
