Thumping win keeps Red Rose hopes alive
LIVINGSTONE LEADS LANCS TO VICTORY... BUT THEY STILL FACE FIGHT TO STAY IN CUP
LANCASHIRE kept their Royal London One-Day Cup hopes alive with a thumping nine-wicket win over Leicestershire.
With Matthew Parkinson again starring with the ball - taking 4-30 – the Red Rose bowled out the home side for just 172 at Oakham School.
And Liam Livingstone and Haseeb Hameed made light work of the chase, reaching their target in just 25.5 overs to record their second win in North Group, and move them up to fifth in the table.
But they will still probably need to win their final two games - at Derbyshire on Sunday and at home to Yorkshire at Emirates Old Trafford on Tuesday – to have a chance of qualifying for the knockout stage.
But the manner of their win mins they have a huge run rate, which could yet be crucial in deciding final places in the table.
Captain Livingstone smashed seven sixes in racing to 90 off just 56 balls, with Hameed – who was called into the side following Keaton Jennings’ England call-up – hitting 55 from 70 deliveries in an unbroken second-wicket partnership of 133.
Bowling first after winning the toss proved a wise decision by Livingstone. There was something in the pitch for the seamers, as Australian Joe Mennie produced an almost unplayable delivery to Cameron Delport which pitched on leg stump and moved away to hit off.
Paul Horton, a former Lancashire captain who is now skipper of Leicestershire, did not last much longer as Graham Onions found his outside edge and Livingstone took the catch at second slip.
Ned Eckersley and Mark Cosgrove began to rebuild the innings, but when their third-wicket partnership had reached 42, Eckersley attempted to reverse sweep the left-arm spin of Stephen Parry and top-edged high to Alex Davies – whose hand injury is still stopping him from keeping wicket – coming in off the boundary at backward point.
Colin Ackermann struggled from the start against Parkinson and was quickly bowled by a googly he failed to pick from the leg-spinner, before Neil Dexter, who had yet to get off the mark, tried to loft Parkinson over mid-off and failed to clear Josh Bohannon.
Cosgrove was Leicestershire’s only real hope of posting a competitive score, but the Australian had only just passed 50 when he played and missed at Parkinson, dragged his rear foot and Dane Vilas completed a smart stumping.
Tom Wells lofted Parkinson high to Parry at long-on, Ateeq Javid steered the spinner tamely to Livingstone at wide extra cover, and Dieter Klein was lbw to Onions as the Foxes were bowled out with an over unused.
Davies and Hameed gave Lancashire a solid start to their reply, and though Davies top-edged a pull at Klein to be caught behind for 23, Livingstone ensured the chase ended very quickly.