Foxes 2ND XI Edge Past Derbyshire in Final Over Thriller

Derbyshire Men 2nd XI batted with a fiery tempo despite a consistent flow of wickets, most notably three a piece for Trevaskis and Rizvi. Andersson and Whitely both made the forties, but neither managed a big total as Derbyshire set a competitive 193/9 in their twenty overs.

In reply, Leicestershire Men 2nd XI also lost early wickets, before Mike’s 41 and Trevaskis’ 65 brought the visitors back into contention. Maddy hit a vital 38 in 16 balls, giving the Foxes a chance heading into the final overs. Rayner was on strike for the last over, hitting two boundaries to take Leicestershire to victory by 3 wickets with only two balls to spare.

Sun scorched Duffield CC as Derbyshire 2nd XI captain Donald won the toss and elected to bat first.

Mike struck early thanks to Donald driving straight to Dunk at point, departing for 4, before Bin Naeem top-edged a flashy cut to Gumbs at mid-off on 19 in Mike’s following over.

Despite the two early wickets, Derbyshire fired 69/2 in the powerplay; Jewell was bowled by Rizvi for 8 in the seventh over. Trevaskis’ spin picked up another wicket in the next over as he caught and bowled a dangerous Andersson for 44. At the end of the ninth over, Montgomery swept Rizvi only as far as Wood on the leg-side boundary, falling for 4.

Trevaskis removed Basra LBW for 3 in the twelfth over and Rizvi had Potts caught behind for 15 as he bottom-edged a cut. However, the Falcons had maintained a strong run-rate, sitting on 144/7 with five overs remaining.

In the penultimate over, Whitley fell just short of a half century for 48, picking out Scriven at long-off, giving Trevaskis his third wicket of the afternoon. At the start of the final over, Aitchinson dragged a cut onto his stumps – Mike bowling him for 29. The hosts ended their twenty overs 193/9.

Leicestershire also lost early wickets, starting with Dunk who heaved a Montgomery delivery to Basra deep in the leg-side for 8, before Gumbs threw his arms into a drive, edging to Jewell at first slip, falling to Aitchison for 1.

At the end of the third over, Andersson dismissed Scriven for 2, miscuing a flick into the leg side as Basra completed the catch.

Trevaskis and Mike started to rebuild the innings, taking the Foxes to 86/3 by the halfway point – the former passing fifty in 32 balls, reaching the milestone by dispatching a full toss for six. Two overs later, Mike drove Potts aerially to Jewell in the covers, departing for a necessary 41.

In the fourteenth over, Montgomery took his second wicket of the match, removing Trevaskis for 65 as he top-edged a drive to Jewell. Maddy provided a crucial 38 before hooking an Aitchison delivery to Potts at cow-corner with Leicestershire needing 24 to win from the final three overs.

Potts conceded nine in the seventeenth over, but Aitchison removed Wood for 16 in the following which went for 7 runs. Rayner started the final over with a boundary and continued in the same vein, winning the match for Leicestershire with two balls remaining as he thrashed a cut through point, completing the victory for the visitors by three wickets.