Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Ben Cliff celebrates the dismissal of Zen Malik (2-1 in the second over) with wicketkeeper Harry Duke and captain Dom Bess.
Yorkshire are up and running in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, and Ben Cliff was their star of the show with an excellent 5-46 from 8.3 overs as Warwickshire were soundly beaten by five wickets chasing 138 at Scarborough.
The Bears were bowled out for 137 inside 37 overs, and it could have been much worse for last year’s semi-finalists having crumbled to 38-7 inside 14 overs having been inserted by Dom Bess.
Cliff struck four times with the new ball, bowling from the Trafalgar Square End, before returning to wrap up the innings at the Peasholm Park End, getting Vansh Jani for an excellent counter-attacking 82 off 92 balls with five sixes.
Two youngsters shone. Cliff, 22, was playing his first game since the opening week of the season at Hampshire in the Championship, where he suffered a side injury. Jani, 20, was playing only his second first-team match. This was his first fifty.
Other performances were worthy of note. Matthew Revis and George Hill struck twice apiece with their seamers, Jack White was brilliant for 1-21 from 10 overs, helping Cliff set the tone with the new ball. Adam Lyth’s four catches in the slips equalled a Yorkshire record for outfield catches in a List A innings.
Despite the Bears, semi-finalists last year, adding 99 for the last three wickets in 23 overs, Yorkshire knocked off their target with significant comfort to start Group B with a bang.Â
Pakistani overseas opener Imam-Ul-Haq led the chase with a composed 55 off 83 balls with nine fours, the win achieved in the 33rd over.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Safe hands in the slips. Adam Lyth took four catches today, equalling the record for most catches by a Yorkshire out-fielder in a List A innings.
Yorkshire couldn’t have asked for a better start on a pitch with extra bounce, with Warwickshire slipping to 24-5 in the 10th over, including the loss of their talismanic captain Ed Barnard for five.Â
Cliff took four of them, while new-ball partner White ousted all-rounder Barnard, who was their leading run-scorer and leading wicket-taker last summer as the Bears reached the semi-finals.
Cliff brilliantly set the tone with two wickets in three balls in his opening over – the second – as the score slipped to 1-2.Â
He had left-handed Rob Yates caught at cover off a leading edge as he looked to play to leg before Zen Malik was caught in a similar position following a miscued drive. James Wharton took both catches.
Barnard was then bowled by White, his off bail clipped having played down the wrong line against one angled in at the right-hander.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Dom Bess ‘fields’ a stray newspaper on the outfield whilst also captaining Yorkshire expertly today.
Cliff’s third came as a driving Hamza Shaikh edged to Lyth at second slip before extra bounce forced Kai Smith to loop a catch to Will Luxton at backward point.Â
The wickets kept coming. Revis replaced Cliff at the Trafalgar Square End and also struck twice in his first three balls at the score slipped to 38-7 in the 14th over.
Revis’s seam accounted for Alex Davies and Jake Lintott caught at slip by Lyth. The former was undone by extra bounce, the latter just tentatively feeling for one outside off.
Hill got in on the act when he had Michael Booth caught at slip by Lyth before Ethan Bamber drilled him to mid-off, leaving the score at 73-9 in the 25th over.
But right-handed Jani was impressive in taking his side to respectability.Â
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Warwickshire youngster Vansh Jani impressed with 82 to give his bowlers something to work with from 37-8.
He reached his fifty off 67 balls with six fours and a hoisted six over long-on against Hill’s bowling.
By the time he reached his fifty, Warwickshire were 101-9 in the 31st over.
He continued on, scooping White for another of his five sixes and clobbering three more off Revis, including one out of the ground at long-on towards Trafalgar Square.
He shared 64 with last man Oliver Hannon-Dalby, a Warwickshire List A record partnership for the 10th wicket and comfortably the best of the innings. Last man Hannon-Dalby contributed only one.Â
Cliff, having switched ends, returned from the Peasholm Park End to get Jani caught at mid-on to wrap up the innings.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Imam-Ul-Haq anchored Yorkshire’s chase with an opening 55.
Yorkshire scored only one run in the first three overs of their chase as Lyth and Imam started cautiously.
Lyth was caught behind off Hannon-Dalby’s seam before Wharton pushed to cover off Bamber, leaving the score at 47-2 in the 14th over.
Thankfully, Imam anchored things expertly. Strong on the pull and drive, he reached 20 with five boundaries.Â
Booth’s pace accounted for Wharton and Revis in successive deliveries, caught behind off the inside-edge and caught low down at second slip, as the score fell to 72-4 in the 21st over.
Thankfully, however, any nerves were settled by Imam and Hill sharing 56 for the fifth wicket. They took the sting out of the situation. And even though Imam was caught at deep square-leg pulling at Booth, Yorkshire got home with plenty of room to spare. Hill finished 20 not out and Harry Duke finished things with a four and six in 10 off four balls.