By Gary Watton
August 18 2017

Adam Lyth was unquestionably the star of the show, as he tore up the record books with an exhilarating innings that lasted until the last few balls of Yorkshire's allotted twenty overs. Along with Kohler-Cadmore, Lyth added 127, and then for the second wicket the ace opener shared in a stand of 124 with Willey. Not wishing to disparage the efforts of his partners, Lyth (the bald eagle) dominated the proceedings with an eye-catching total of twenty fours and seven sixes. Ironically the Vikings could only muster a mediocre nine runs off the last deliveries which amounted to an anti-climax after the fireworks display of the first eighteen overs.

The Steelbacks who finished a distant second actually made a surprisingly good fist of the run chase when a belligerent knock from Levi propelled the visitors to seventy-two runs off 4.4 overs. However once Rossington was dismissed, the wheels came off Northamptonshire's challenge. Chief architect of the demolition of the away team's batting order was Azeem Rafiq who helped himself to his own personal milestone, with an impressive haul of five wickets costing nineteen runs, ably assisted by a trio of scalps from his spin partner Rashid.

However this was the Adam Lyth match, as he posted a domestic Twenty20 record, helping his team to a Twenty20 best-ever score in English county cricket.

Tragically this Yorkshire team ought to go down in history as the best-ever team to fail to qualify for the last eight. Regrettably whilst the Vikings blasted a vast array of runs, they were also specialists in losing close contests - and this was ultimately their undoing. In fact the Vikings' ill-fated campaign was perfectly summed up by the final round of four matches in their group when three teams narrowly sneaked past them and qualified for the quarter finals courtesy of some mighty close victory margins. Maybe if there was a prize for the unluckiest county in the history of English Twenty20 cricket, then this history-making Yorkshire team would be deserving recipients.

YORKSHIRE VIKINGS versus Northamptonshire Steelbacks; in Leeds; Thursday the seventeenth of August. YORKSHIRE VIKINGS won the toss.

YORKSHIRE VIKINGS: 260 for four (off twenty overs)

Lyth c Duckett b Azharullah 161 (254-4)

Kohler-Cadmore c Kleinveldt b Keogh 41 (127-1)

Willey c Cobb b Kleinveldt 40 (251-2)

Bresnan lbw b Azharullah 0 (253-3)

Plunkett not out 7

Marsh not out 0

Extras: eleven

Northamptonshire Steelbacks: 136 (off 14.5 overs)

Levi c Plunkett b Rafiq 65 (110-3)

Rossington b Rafiq 25 (72-1)

Cobb c Sarfraz b Rafiq 5 (88-2)

Duckett b Rashid 3 (110-4)

Wakely c Willey b Rafiq 2 (114-5)

Keogh c Plunkett b Patterson 5 (128-7)

Crook c Ballance b Rafiq 0 (115-6)

Kleinveldt c Plunkett b Rashid 13 (133-9)

Sanderson c and b Rashid 1 (130-8)

Gleeson b Patterson 3 (136)

Azharullah not out 2

Extras: twelve

Rafiq 4-019-5 and Rashid 4-0-31-3

YORKSHIRE VIKINGS win by 124 runs.

BATSMEN 'CHART' (minimum requirement: one hundred runs and average in excess of forty):

Lyth: average - 44.58; 535 runs; highest score - 161

Marsh: average - 41.29; 289 runs; highest score - 60 not out

Willey: average - 40.55; 446 runs; highest score - 118

BOWLERS' 'CHART' (minimum requirement: ten wickets and average less than forty):

Bresnan: seventeen wickets; average - 19.88

Rafiq: seventeen wickets; average - 21.65

Rashid: fifteen wickets; average - 22.73

Patterson: fourteen wickets; average - 24.21

Willey: eleven wickets; average - 31.73