Report: Yorkshire Vikings v Durham, Vitality Blast – Yorkshire County Cricket Club

Scorecard 

Yorkshire Vikings v Durham 

Vitality Blast, North Group

Thursday July 11, 2024, 6.30pm 

Headingley 

Toss: Durham won it and elected to bat. 

Vikings: Adam Lyth, Dawid Malan, Shan Masood c, George Hill, James Wharton, Donovan Ferreira w, Jordan Thompson, Dom Bess, Jafer Chohan, Ben Cliff, Dan Moriarty.

Durham: Graham Clark, Alex Lees c, Ollie Robinson w, Colin Ackermann, Bas de Leede, Ashton Turner, Michael Jones, Ben Dwarshuis, Ben Raine, Callum Parkinson, Nathan Sowter. 

Match Summary: Birthday boy Jafer Chohan made a sensational return from two games out with a broken right thumb to claim five for 14 as Yorkshire crushed Durham to give their quarter-final hopes a significant boost.

There were milestone aplenty as the Vikings bowled Durham, also in the mix for the last eight, out for 107 inside 17 overs en-route to a seven-wicket win, achieved with 20 balls to spare. 

Chohan’s maiden five-for also places him third on the list of the county’s best ever T20 bowling spells. 

Some way to celebrate your 22nd birthday! 

This was the Vikings’ fifth win in 11 games and ended a run of three successive defeats to put them within striking distance of the top four places in the North Group.

A win against Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford tomorrow could return them to the top four qualifying places with two games remaining. 

Report: This really was a dreamy night for Yorkshire and for Jafer Chohan in front of a 6,023 crowd.

Yorkshire struck three times in the six-over powerplay to make a fast start having been asked to bowl first on a used pitch, certainly not the featherbed we are used to seeing so often at Headingley.

But with the spin triumvirate of Dom Bess, Dan Moriarty and Chohan available again, it was no surprise to see this mode of attack. And you can likely expect the same tomorrow when the Vikings make the trip across the Pennines to Emirates Old Trafford. 

Off-spinner Bess had Durham captain Alex Lees stumped for two in the second over before helping left-armer Moriarty remove Ollie Robinson with a catch at mid-on.

Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Dom Bess and Ben Cliff were also amongst the wickets. 

Seamer Ben Cliff had opener Graham Clark caught at mid-off – 28-3 in the fifth – before Jordan Thompson and Chohan got in on the act.

The DJ’s play list included hits such as Three Lions, with the majority of folk still basking in the glory of England’s Euro2024 semi-final success over the Netherlands last night.

Not Dutch duo Bas de Leede and Colin Ackermann, however.

And things weren’t about to get easier for them, as they both were bowled by Thompson and Chohan, leaving Durham in tatters at 40-5 in the eighth.

The visiting cause was helped by a steadying 56-run stand for the seventh wicket between experienced heads Ben Raine and Australian Ashton Turner.

But things weren’t steady for long. 

Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Jafer Chohan takes the applause after his stunning match-winning display. 

Durham lost their sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth wickets for the addition of one run in the space of five balls in the 14th and 15th overs, falling to 97-9.

Turner was caught and bowled by Bess, who finished with 2-26, before Chohan trapped Raine lbw for an innings-high 33 next ball and then had Ben Dwarshuis caught behind to mark a team hat-trick.

Later in the 15th, Michael Jones was bowled before Chohan struck again in his next to wrap up the innings as Nathan Sowter handed Donovan Ferreira a second stumping. 

Durham started the evening in fourth place, but they slipped out of the qualifying places in the North. 

Yorkshire’s task of chasing was relatively straightforwards, though there were signs that this wasn’t an easy batting pitch. For example, they didn’t race to the target. 

Openers Adam Lyth and Dawid Malan eased to a 64 stand in nine overs before falling. 

Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Adam Lyth top-scored in the chase with two sixes in 30. 

Lyth was caught and bowled by Sowter’s leg-spin for 30 and Malan, for 29, caught at mid-wicket off de Leede’s seam. But they were nothing more than consolatory strikes on a difficult Durham night, who saw Dwarshuis get James Wharton caught in the deep at 95-3 in the 16th over. 

Magic moment: Yorkshire’s team hat-trick. They claimed three wickets in as many balls during the disastrous Durham collapse from 96-5 in the 14th over to 97-9 in the 15th. In all, the visitors lost four wickets for one run in five balls, to which spinners Dom Bess and Jafer Chohan contributed.

Turning point: It came early on. Durham falling to 40-5 inside eight overs left the visitors with a mountain to climb. It was one they ultimately failed to scale. 

Stat of the match: Jafer Chohan’s 5-14 from 3.4 overs places him behind only Tim Bresnan and Jack Shutt on the list of Yorkshire’s best ever T20 figures.

Seamer Bresnan took 6-19 in a Roses win against Lancashire here in 2017.

Off-spinner Shutt returned 5-11 in beating Durham at the Riverside two years later.

Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Yeeeesss! Jordan Thompson celebrates victory.

What they said – Jafer Chohan: “Over the last two years, it’s one thing that’s been on my mind a bit – that I feel I’ve bowled nicely but have not had that one game where I’ve taken three or four wickets. I’ve not had more than two wickets.

“For me, that was quite a big stepping stone – to take the role as a wicket-taker. That’s the whole fun of bowling leg-spin – trying to take wickets.

“We had a couple of games, narrow ones where we felt we should have won. There was a little bit of pressure there. We’re playing good cricket, now it’s about getting over the line. 

“I did wake up this morning and think, ‘Peter Siddle got a hat-trick on his birthday’. I wasn’t that far off. I was very happy with that.

“It happened in April at first (right thumb break), and then I had six weeks. I got another little knock on it, and it has reappeared in exactly the same spot. It’s not been ideal.

“Speaking to the doctors, they said I shouldn’t be playing. I have to be in my splint all the time.

Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Yorkshire come out to the field tonight.

“But I said, ‘Are you sure I can’t play? I’ll just bowl, field at fine-leg and hopefully not have to bat’.

“They weren’t so keen on the idea, but I’ve managed to get the doctor and physio on board here. Clearly it’s paid off.”

What’s next: Yorkshire are back in action immediately, and it’s the big one. They face Lancashire Lightning at Emirates Old Trafford (6.30pm) tomorrow evening.

They are aiming to complete the Roses T20 double having won at Headingley earlier in the campaign.