Leicestershire Foxes and Derbyshire Falcons shared a dramatic tie after a see-saw battle at the Uptonsteel County Ground.
Rishi Patel (94 from 119 balls) and Lewis Hill (93 off 95) shared a 166-run second-wicket partnership as the Foxes posted 312 for five from their 50 overs, bolstered by valuable contributions from Peter Handscomb (35 off 23) and Ben Cox (35 not out off 22) as the last 10 overs added 90 to their total.
Alex Green (five for 64), the Foxes’ 18-year-old fast bowling prospect, had another memorable day, taking his third five-wicket haul of the competition, but it was not enough to see his side home. Zak Chappell (49 off 37) almost took the Falcons to victory as Leicestershire’s Tom Scriven conceded 13 off the final over but was run out off the last ball.
Earlier Harry Came (67 off 72) and Caleb Jewell (39 off 34) had given the Falcons a flying start before Matt Montgomery (47 from 55) and Anuj Dal (45 off 24) kept them in contention.
The result leaves the Foxes on 10 points and Derbyshire on eight and while the Falcons have three matches left to Leicestershire’s two, the chances of either making a top-three finish look tenuous.
Derbyshire soon removed Sol Budinger after opting to bowl on a damp, overcast morning, the left-hander caught at midwicket off Rory Haydon, the young Derbyshire fast bowler, who had dropped him off his own bowling the previous delivery. Haydon damaged his right hand attempting the catch and, though he completed the over, was off the field for the remainder of the innings.
For the next couple of hours, Patel and Hill dominated. Hill completed a brisk half-century in 52 balls, timing his shots beautifully in gathering seven boundaries. A dab to third man from Patel took their stand into three figures in 18 overs. Patel, left out of the last two matches, completed his fifty off 79.
Hill looked nailed on for his first List A century in four years when a lovely cut off Ben Aitchison took him into the 90s. Yet the next ball proved his undoing, pulled straight into the hands of Anuj Dal at midwicket.
Patel hit four sixes, all over the legside boundary, three of Martin Andersson. Like Hill, though, he lost his wicket with the hard work done, hitting in the air as Andersson pitched wide of off stump and finding the fielder at mid-off.
Shan Masood fell for 22 off 28 balls, but Handscomb and Cox ensured the Patel-Hill partnership was not wasted to set Derbyshire a challenging total.
Falcons openers Came and Caleb Jewell made it look somewhat less daunting. Where the home side had been 39 for one from 10, Derbyshire put on 81 at more than six an over before Leicestershire could make a breakthrough in the 13th. Left-arm spinner Liam Trevaskis ended the partnership by bowling the left-handed Jewell through the gate.
Ian Holland dealt the Falcons a setback when he had Came caught at mid-off but the Falcons were well placed at 148 for two from 25.
Montgomery top-edged to backward point off Mike and another budding partnership was stymied when Green had Andersson leg before, after which the youngster had Brooke Guest caught at third man before taking a third wicket in as many overs as Ross Whiteley nicked behind.
Dal, on his first outing of the season in this competition, had a life on 25 when Masood spilled an easy chance at mid-on off, going on to share a 64-run stand with Chappell that swung the balance back to the Falcons.
But then he was run out as the non-striker by some smart work by Holland before Green returned with a superb final over that cost just one run, having Aitchison and Jack Morley both caught at backward point, leaving Derbyshire needing 14 off the final over.
Chappell plundered 12 from the first three deliveries off Scriven, who then bowled a wide to leave the scores level. Two dots followed before Chappell tried to scramble a leg bye off the last delivery but did not make it.
Derbyshire’s Anuj Dal said: “It was a very tense game but that’s what I love about 50-over cricket, that it goes right down to the wire. You’re never really out of the game until the last ball.
“Harry Came and Jewelly (Caleb Jewell) set it up nicely for us and it’s just a shame we couldn’t get over the line. The way Chappie (Zak Chappell) and I were batting, we knew we could take it deep so it’s a shame I got out when I did.
“It was a tricky pitch, I think, difficult to assess early on. Conditions dictated that we bowl first but with pace on the ball, it was a relatively good pitch to score on. Once we started to change into going more pace off, going to cutters into the wicket, it made things a little bit more tricky.
“Their guys Rishi and Hilly played really well. But we felt 313 was a very achievable total. To be so close to the win, with three balls to go and the scores level, the lads are pretty gutted.
“But we can’t dwell on it too much. I think we can take a lot of positives from how we played today, going into the next three games. Ideally, we would have wanted a win today. It’s out of our hands but if we win our last three games, you can never say never in this competition.”
