Drops cost Lancashire as they slip to a Rapids T20 defeat
WORCESTERSHIRE are quickly becoming Lancashire’s bogey team this season.
Having suffered defeat to them in the Royal London One-Day Cup and the Specsavers County Championship already, the Red Rose made it an unwanted hat-trick as they began their Vitality Blast campaign with a loss.
After being knocked out of the One-Day Cup in the group stage, and struggling in the relegation zone in the County Championship, a T20 pick-me-up was the order of the day at Emirates Old Trafford for Lancashire.
However, despite posting what looked like a competitive 188-6 on a ground where high scores are traditionally difficult to make in this format due to the size of the outfield, Lightning failed to defend it.
And they were made to pay for dropping four catches by Worcestershire, who won by five wickets although with just two balls to spare as some tight bowling in the middle overs kept Lancashire in it.
Keaton Jennings’ good form continued with 50 off just 33 balls as he built on a promising start by Liam Livingstone - who smashed four sixes in his 35 – and Alex Davies.
And a blistering 25 from Jordan Clark at the end helped push Lancashire towards 190.
But Joe Clarke and Callum Ferguson gave the Rapids a lightning start - racing to 70 in the six over powerplay, including 20 off a Stephen Parry over. It rubbed salt into the wounds for the spinner, who earlier dropped an easy chance to get rid of Clarke.
Joe Mennie also dropped Clarke when he was 40, although he only made two more before he played on to a James Faulkner delivery.
That wicket sparked a Lancashire fightback as Ferguson soon followed for 35 and then Clark bowled Ben Cox, leaving the Rapids on 118-4 in the 13th.
It was nip and tuck until the end from there, but a 67-run stand between Ross Whiteley (28) and Brett D’Oliveira (37no) – who was dropped twice – proved crucial.
Clark broke the stand in the final over as Whiteley was caught by Arron Lilley with three needed off the last two balls. But an Ed Barnard four sealed it for the visitors.
And Jennings, playing his first T20 match for Lancashire, admitted the dropped catches cost them.
He said: “For the majority of the game we were ahead and played better cricket.
“There are a few bits where we let ourselves down and that cost us - a couple of overs, a couple of bits in the field - but that’s T20 cricket, you have to make sure everything you do is top-notch.
“Cricket is a game of human error, and the errors we made cost us.
“In four-day cricket if you drop a catch, there is time to pull it back. In T20, it can really cost you.
“We need to leave what happened in the changing room and walk away with a good feeling because we have a long way to go in this competition.”
Lancashire now face Derbyshire tonight at the 3AAA County Ground.