Report: Warwickshire v Derbyshire, Metro Bank One Day Cup

Warwickshire continued their buccaneering progress in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup with a fifth successive win, by four wickets over Derbyshire at Edgbaston.

Bears completed their highest ever List A chase against Derbyshire by overhauling the visitors’ decent but far from daunting total of 247 for nine.

Half-centuries from David Lloyd (65, 92 balls) and Brooke Guest (57, 59) assured the visitors something to bowl at but the innings lacked a late charge. Olly Hannon-Dalby strengthened his place as top wicket-taker in the comp this year with four for 49 while Henry Brookes, released from Hundred duty, took three for 44.

Warwickshire then made measured progress to 248 for six (Will Rhodes 75, 95 balls) in 47.4 overs to leave Derbyshire with just one win from five games and only pride to play for in their remaining three matches.

After choosing to bat, Derbyshire saw off Hannon-Dalby’s first spell but Harry Came lifted Brookes to point to end an opening stand of 35 in ten overs. Luis Reece and Lloyd added a sedate 48 before the former played across a flighted ball from Jake Lintott and fell lbw.

That was Lintott’s 115th victim in county cricket – next came Tazeem Ali’s first. The 17-year-old Attock leg-spinner, making his debut, showed the bottle and skill to follow a ball which went for five leg-side wides with one that turned to win an lbw decision against Haider Ali.

Lloyd reached his eighth List A half-century but then got an attempt to lap Brookes horribly wrong and fell lbw. Guest batted most assertively until he played on from a slog at Hannon-Dalby who prevented a late charge from the batters by twice taking wickets with successive balls. The Yorkshireman will be on a hat-trick when he runs in to deliver his first ball against Northamptonshire at Edgbaston on Friday.

Ed Barnard launched Warwickshire’s reply with a crisp 23 then clipped Suranga Lakmal firmly to mid-wicket where Came took a superb diving catch. Reece nipped one through Rob Yates’ gate but Rhodes and Michael Burgess (46, 43 balls) added 70 in 13 overs to put the pursuit well on target.

Burgess was adjudged lbw, sweeping Mark Watt, but Rhodes continued his productive 50-over campaign. The captain moved to 50 in 64 balls and it was a surprise when he chopped on to Reece with 39 needed from 52 balls.

Jake Bethell (44, 45 balls) after a sketchy start, settled to play some handsome strokes. He struck the only two sixes of the game and departed, lbw sweeping at Reece, with the Bears were on the threshold of their record List A chase against Derbyshire, displacing the 217 they reeled in at Derby in 1997 to record a one-wicket win.

Rhodes said: “Derbyshire got a good score for that wicket so to chase 250 like that with relative ease in the end was great. When you are playing well you tend to get over the line in those games so that will give us confidence going into two big games at the back half of the week,

“We didn’t want to leave too many to get in the last ten overs so me and Burgy in our little partnerships gave ourselves targets to get to. We didn’t want to chase more than 60 in the last ten so to get it down to 45/50 was good. Then Beth batted really well and Ethan got a crucial little 15 off 16 balls. It was a well-paced chase.

“We are quite bowler-heavy in this tournament so we know we probably need 20 or 30 less runs than in previous years with our bowling attack. That means there is responsibility on our top five batters but they have reacted really well and then it’s always nice to get players back from the Hundred so to get Jake Bethell back and see him play like that on a tricky wicket was really good.”