Only 17.2 overs were possible at Blackpool as rain meant Durham’s Vitality Blast game against Lancashire Lightning ended in no result.
Lancashire were moderately placed on 133 for six after 17.4 overs when the rain arrived on cue at 6.30. This result means that the Emirates Old Trafford team need only to beat Derbyshire in Friday’s game at the Incora County Ground to clinch their qualification for the knockout stages of the Blast
The home side’s Powerplay was a quite bizarre affair with a total of nine runs being scored off four of the six overs but 34 coming off the other two. The home side also lost three wickets, Josh Bohannon being bowled for four by Ben Raine in the third over before Liam Trevaskis had Luke Wells caught at mid-on by Scott Borthwick for 21. Two balls later, the slow left-armer had Rob Jones leg before wicket for nought when reverse-sweeping.
That brought Tim David to the wicket much sooner than Lancashire fans may have been hoping but the big-hitting Singaporean made only 16 before slicing Nathan Sowter’s first ball to Raine at backward point. However, Bell and Croft rebuilt the innings with an understandably careful partnership of 55 in 7.1 overs before Bell was caught at deep midwicket off Sowter after a coolly impressive 27-ball innings.
Danny Lamb made five before being AJ Tye had him athletically caught by sub fielder Jon Bushnell who was running back from mid-off. But it was the Durham spinners who had restricted Lancashire’s batsmen most effectively with Sowter taking two for 17 from his four overs and Trevaskis two for 29 from the same allotment.
Lancashire’s preparations for the game were disrupted when skipper Dane Vilas was suspended for one game following his dissent after his dismissal in the County Championship match against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.
Keaton Jennings was also ruled out with a calf injury so Bell kept wicket on his first-team debut. Matthew Parkinson was unavailable due to a hand injury but Luke Wood was in Lancashire’s XI, having returned a day early from England’s white-ball tour to the Netherlands in which he didn’t play a game.