Yorkshire in pole position in One-Day Cup after Milnes heroics

As Yorkshire secured a top-flight position in a tight Group B battle for qualification to the knockout stages of the One-Day Cup, Matt Milnes scored a hat-trick and his career-best 7-38.

With one round left, Yorkshire appeared to be the clear favorites to win, with victories for White Rose County, Somerset, Warwickshire, and Middlesex.

Worcestershire defeated Leicestershire Foxes in Group A to become the second team after Gloucestershire qualified, leaving Hampshire and Essex to compete for the final knockout spot.

Before the match, the Foxes had a few slim chances of qualifying, but they lost by 16 runs. Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Surrey were also eliminated in the final match, with Hampshire and Essex posting the victories that kept them in the hunt.

Sussex, Durham, and Kent‘s chances of progressing were ended in Group B.

Yorkshire maintained their lead at the top of Group B largely as a result of Milnes’ heroic heroics, which included taking two wickets in two balls in the fifth over and improving it with a hat-trick as Sussex were limited to 284-9.

With an excellent contribution from James Wharton (85), the pair broke the deadlock with a 196-run partnership for the second wicket, setting the stage for a controlled Yorkshire reply.

With a four-point lead over the chasing pack and a high net run rate, Yorkshire are now favorites to win the knockouts after winning with 14 balls to spare.

Rishi Patel took 5-65 and Brett O’Oliveira hit 107 balls out of 105 at Worcestershire to win the game.

With one final group match to go, Somerset will defeat Kent to end Kent’s chances of reaching the knockout stages and strengthen their own hold on a top-three finish. The team is one of three remaining on 20 points.

Joe Denly and Jaydn Denly, both 39 and Jaydn, made a dad-and-lad partnership of 97 when Kent was held to a subpar 269-9.

With only 33 balls left, the Cidermen won by four wickets as Tom Lammonby led Somerset’s chase with a century (102 in 104 balls).

With only 14 balls left, Durham won by that margin with a large total of 300-8, which was popular in Group A.

Durham’s overall record included Alex Lees’ 148, but Ed Barnard, the Bears’ captain, had him equal. Hamza Shaikh scored 141 and Ed Barnard scored 141.

After posting victories over Gloucestershire and Derbyshire, Essex and Hampshire will battle it out for the top spot in Group A.

Essex will need to defeat Derbyshire to put pressure on Hampshire, while Hampshire only needs to win their final game against Gloucestershire to secure their spot in the knockouts.

Standout innings for Essex came from Tom Westley’s 92-run knock, with half-centuries coming from Matt Critchley (64) and Simon Harmer (51).

The chasers were all out for 159 before a regular clatter of Gloucestershire wickets, with Critchley scoring 3-27 with the ball to give Essex the victory by 130 runs.

With five balls remaining, Hampshire fought back to defeat Derbyshire’s impressive total of 339-5 with four half-century contributions from Fletcha Middleton, Ben Brown, Ben Mayes, and James Fuller.

Group A

Derbyshire Falcons vs. Essex

Leicestershire Foxes vs. Glamorgan in Cardiff

Gloucestershire vs. Hampshire in Bristol

Worcestershire vs. Surrey:

Group B

Canterbury: Yorkshire vs. Kent Spitfires

Middlesex vs. Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford

Somerset vs. Northants Steelbacks: Taunton

Warwickshire vs. Sussex Sharks in Edgbaston