Blast Report: Bears v Yorkshire Vikings
Birmingham Bears blew the Vitality Blast North Group wide open with a thumping ten-wicket win over Yorkshire Vikings at Edgbaston.
The Bears bounced back from three successive defeats with the most resounding of victories after bowling the top-of-the-table Vikings out for 81 in 15.3 overs.
A Vikings side heavily depleted by England calls and injury lost all ten wickets for 62 runs in 86 balls as Carlos Brathwaite took three for seven, Craig Miles three for 19, and Danny Briggs two for 12. It was their lowest total in the Blast and the lowest by any team at Edgbaston.
Adam Hose (46 not out, 31 balls) and Ed Pollock (33 not out, 23 balls) then hurried their side to 86 without loss in 8.3 overs to secure the Bears’ first ever ten-wicket Blast victory.
Yorkshire chose to bat and started at a gallop – after Adam Lyth struck two fours and a six in the first over, they were 15 without loss. Then they hit some turbulence – after six wickets fell for 23 runs in 40 balls, they were 42 for six.
Lyth, having smashed 19 from eight balls, was bowled by Brathwaite. Jordan Thompson edged Tim Bresnan behind then Brathwaite added two wickets in three balls, Gary Ballance brilliantly caught by Matt Lamb at fine leg, and Mark Stoneman, taken by Sam Hain at cover.
George Hill edged Briggs to slip and when Dom Bess chipped Miles’ first ball to mid on, it was 42 for six. Smart wicketkeeping from Michael Burgess accounted for Jonny Tattersall, stumped off Jake Lintott, and Matthew Waite, caught off Miles.
Harry Brook and Matt Fisher added 16 before the latter top-edged a pull at Miles. Brook pulled Miles for six but Burgess swooped again when Lockie Ferguson charged and missed at Briggs and Brook was left stranded on 28 (24 balls, one four, one six).
Only an immediate clatter of wickets could salvage the Vikings but the Bears raced to 30 without loss in three overs. Hose greeted Waite to the attack, in the fifth over, with three successive fours and the openers raced past 50 in 31 balls when Pollock launched a flick 16 rows back over mid-wicket.
To the delight of most in a third successive Edgbaston sellout crowd, victory arrived with a whopping 68 balls to spare when Hose hoisted Ferguson into the upper tier of the West Stand.
