On a thrilling opening night at Emirates Old Trafford, the Lightning defeated Durham for 75 runs before winning by nine wickets. Tom Aspinwall had the best figures of any Lancashire bowler in his T20 debut, while Jack Blatherwick recorded a T20 career best.
After stand-in captain Steven Croft won the toss, Lancashire’s bowlers went on the rampage, and Aspinwall took four for 18, including a wicket with his opening ball in the Twenty20 format, to smash the previous record of four for twenty held by George Edwards against Leicestershire at Emirates Old Trafford in 2015. Blatherwick returned a T20 best of three for 14, as Lancashire’s bowlers ran wild.
From the beginning, Durham’s openers Alex Lees and Graham Clark appeared uneasy with Luke Wood’s (two for 7) quick pace. In the third over, Lees top-eyed a short delivery from the left-arm pace bowler to Aspinwall at short fine leg for four.
Ollie Robinson bowled Lightning’s new Australian foreign player Chris Green for one run after playing back to his off spin. Meanwhile, Aspinwall made a fantastic start to his Twenty20 debut when Graham Clark hit the 20-year-old for ten runs off the opening delivery.
Ben Raine struck Blatherwick’s first two deliveries for four runs, but Blatherwick’s third delivery resulted in an incredible diving catch when Raine got a leading edge that looped back up the wicket.
That left Durham on 30 for four in the 6th over but the night quickly worsened for the visitors who tried to fight fire with fire, only to be left with ashes, as Aspinwall struck with two wickets in two balls. It was the second time in a fortnight that the young all-rounder had achieved this feat against Durham during his five-wicket haul in the Championship match at Blackpool.
First, Ashton Turner was hurried into a cross batted shot that sailed tamely to Croft at mid-off for 1 and then Michael Jones was comprehensively yorked by a rapid delivery to leave the visitors in complete disarray at 31 for six midway through the seventh over.
Two overs later Aspinwall could celebrate his landmark fourth wicket when Colin Ackermann sliced high to Bruce at backward point for 7.
Croft, starting his 19th season in T20 cricket tonight, then brought the house down with a sensational diving catch sprinting back from mid-off to send back Matty Potts for 15, Blatherwick the bowler.
