Notts win after bad timing by Lancs
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE needed the help of six penalty runs before scraping over the line to defeat Lancashire by two wickets in their NatWest T20 Blast encounter at Trent Bridge.
Riki Wessels made 58 and Michael Lumb scored 53 but the home side then collapsed dramatically in pursuit of a victory target of 185, before a timely intervention from the rule book.
Needing 15 runs from the last over, Notts were awarded those six penalty runs as the defending champions had not been in a position to begin their last over before the allotted cut-off time.
A Sam Wood maximum, heaved high over the legside boundary, either side of a couple of scrambled singles, left Luke Fletcher to clip Arron Lilley away for the winning run, with two deliveries remaining.
Notts had been sent on their way by their openers, with Wessels scoring his runs from 31 balls, with seven fours and three sixes, while Lumb registered his first 50 in domestic T20 cricket since July 2013.
Jos Buttler made an unbeaten 56 for Lancashire, who closed on 184 for four, with Karl Brown adding 47. Samit Patel, with two for 31, and Harry Gurney, two for 37, shared the wickets.
The Outlaws’ chase got off to an explosive start, with 72 runs coming from the six powerplay overs. The opening partnership had been extended to 100, a county T20 record against the Red Rose, by the time Lumb hit Stephen Parry to deep midwicket.
Wessels was then bowled by Jordan Clark, who also removed Samit Patel for nought, before George Edwards grabbed three for 38, as the Outlaws slumped from 143 for two to 168 for eight.
Earlier, Buttler’s 27-ball 50 ensured the visitors finished their innings on a positive note.