By Gary Watton
June 29 2013

Not content avec their 'Sunday League' triumph over Yorkshire, Derbyshire proceeded to win their Twenty20 tussle with the Tykes by the narrow margin of two wickets, with only three balls to spare. Oh such cruelty on their nice northern neighbours.

Regrettably, for the home team, a disappointing start to this year's campaign can easily deteriorate into a rut from which there is no escape - if their adventures in the Yorkshire Bank40 are anything to go by!

This encounter in Leeds began with the visitors winning the toss and asking last season's beaten finalists to bat first. In the event, a strong Yorkshire line-up boosted by the availability of the belligerent Jonny Bairstow could only muster a barely adequate 119 for 8 off their allocated twenty overs. The openers Gale and Lyth failed to deliver, while Bairstow himself did not live up to expectations. It took a commendable knock of forty-four runs from the ever-reliable Gary Ballance to ensure some semblance of a competitive total. Derbyshire's cause was greatly assisted by the bowling contribution of Johannes Morkel who conceded a mere nine runs from his three overs, which ultimately proved to be a match-winning effort.

The away team's run chase got off to a flier as forty runs were added for the first wicket, before the north Midlanders collapsed from forty without loss to a scary seventy for seven. However, a further fifty tail-end runs were accumulated for the loss of only one other wicket as the away team squeezed home to record an important victory which leaves Yorkshire with little margin for error in the remainder of the group stage. Unfortunately, the white rose was undone by buffet bowling from Liam Plunkett and an awful over from Adil Rashid who conceded more runs off his six balls than Morkel did from eighteen deliveries.

The only bright news from Yorkshire's dark performance was the return of Azeem Rafiq. Whilst he isn't yet up to the standard of Rashid's batting, he may nevertheless demonstrate himself to be the better spin bowling option - at least if yesterday was anything to judge by!

YORKSHIRE versus Derbyshire; at Headingley; Friday 28th June 2013; Derbyshire won the toss.

YORKSHIRE: 119 for 8 [20 overs]

Gale c Durston b Morkel 5 [5-1]

Lyth c Durston b Morkel 5 [26-2]

Hodgson run out 17 [27-3]

Bairstow c Groenewald b Footitt 12 [41-4]

Ballance c Redfern b Footitt 44 [108-8]

Rashid c Poynton b Footitt 4 [54-5]

Pyrah b Wainwright 7 [82-6]

Plunkett run out 2 [85-7]

Rafiq not out 14

Sidebottom not out 5

Extras: 4

Footitt 3-22

DERBYSHIRE: 120 for 8 [19.3 overs]

Hughes b Brooks 36 [62-3]

Durston c Rafiq b Pyrah 14 [40-1]

Chanderpaul c Bairstow b Pyrah 5 [56-2]

Madsen c Bairstow b Brooks 7 [65-4]

Redfern c Rafiq b Brooks 4 [69-5]

Morkel c Lyth b Rafiq 1 [70-7]

Poynton c Hodgson b Brooks 0 [70-6]

Clare not out 35

Wainwright lbw b Rafiq 7 [92-8]

Groenewald not out 7

Extras: 4

Brooks 4-21

Derbyshire won by two wickets.