Durham will be looking to bounce back from Friday’s 31 run defeat to Northamptonshire Steelbacks when they take on Birmingham Bears today [2:30pm] at Edgbaston.
Durham take on Birmingham Bears today in the final of 3 opening away matches and will be looking to secure their second win on the T20 campaign.
Friday’s loss at Wantage Road saw Chris Lynn strike a 46 ball 83 as the Steelbacks posted 223/4 from 20 overs as Durham fell 31 runs short closing on 192/9.
Unfortunately Ashton Turner is ruled out of selection for today’s game having sustained a shoulder injury against Northamptonshire Steelbacks on Friday night. He is being monitored by the Durham medical staff who are continuing to assess the injury.
In place of Ashton Turner as captain, Liam Trevaskis will skipper Durham for today’s fixture at Edgbaston, while George Drissell has been added to the 14 player squad and could make his Durham T20 debut this afternoon.
Birmingham Bears go into today’s clash with 2 wins following victories over Northamptonshire Steelbacks and Derbyshire Falcons having scored over 200 on both occasions – they currently sit in top spot in the North group.
Squad v Birmingham Bears (29 May)
David Bedingham, Scott Borthwick, Jonathan Bushnell, Brydon Carse, Graham Clark, Paul Coughlin, George Drissell, Ned Eckersley, Oliver Gibson, Michael Jones, Stanley Mcalindon, Ben Raine, Ollie Robinson +, Liam Trevaskis*.
Words from Graham Clark
It was a belting pitch. There were a lot of runs to be had out there. After 10, 11 overs when Ash [Turner] and I were going, I thought we were in with a real chance here. Unfortunate what happened to him, fingers crossed he’s going to be alright, but it’s still too early to assess. It was always going to be a tough task to chase down to 224, but we gave it him a crack, just not to be tonight.
It was remarkable hitting from Chris Lynn. Sometimes when someone hits a big score, they usually give a chance or they usually miss-hit one, but he just didn’t. They were going 20, 30, 40 metres over the boundary. It was just unbelievable hitting. I think sometimes there, you’ve just got to nod your head and say well played to someone. The bowlers gave it a good crack. We knew it was a belting pitch, with a small boundary, one side – the wind was blowing towards it – so we thought if someone could get in, we could chase it down. It was just missing someone to go and get a big score like he did. Probably take responsibility myself there, I probably got to go on and get 70, 80 plus, or build another partnership with someone. But Chris Lynn, I mean, he’s a superstar, so he’s got that in his locker and unfortunately we were on the wrong end tonight.
Birmingham Bears
PEDIGREE: The Bears will be hoping for a season similar to 2014, where they took the Vitality Blast trophy back to Edgbaston. 2017 saw Birmingham reach their third finals day in four years, however lost out in the final to the Nottingham Outlaws. The Bears will be at least looking to replicate last year and reach the quarter finals or even better add another T20 trophy to their cabinet.
DANGERMAN – Jake Lintott is definitely someone to keep an eye on in the Bears’ side. The 28-year-old produced some stunning displays in last year’s competition including career best T20 figures of 4/20 against Northamptonshire Steelbacks, with an economy rate of just over 6. His T20 success for Birmingham saw him picked up in the Hundred and a Caribbean Premier League deal for Barbados Royals.
RISING STAR: 20-year-old all-rounder Dan Mousley is a real talent and Academy graduate from the Warwickshire ranks. A former England Under 19 cricketer he performed outstanding for the national side during England’s series against West Indies. He can bat and bowl off spin, and with a T20 best of 58* not out, he is a real talent for the future.
LAST VISIT: Ben Stokes made his T20 return as Durham won by 22-runs at the Riverside. Stokes scored 29, notched one wicket and claimed two catches, although Cameron Bancroft’s unbeaten 76 was the foundation of Durham’s triumph in their total of 185. Brydon Carse recorded career-best figures of three for 30 to limit Birmingham to 163 for eight.
Match Coverage
The Club’s match centre will be in operation for the fixture with live scorecards, statistics & video highlights as they happen. You can watch the game live via the Birmingham Bears YouTube channel.
There will also be regular updates on Twitter, with a match report and post-match reaction on the website following the conclusion of the game.