Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Imam-Ul-Haq celebrates his fourth century of this season’s Metro Bank One-Day Cup. He is the leading run-scorer in the competition with 688 in eight innings.
Yorkshire suffered Metro Bank One-Day Cup semi-final heartbreak as Hampshire won a rain-affected nail-biter at Scarborough today, the visitors defending a revised 41-over target of 254 following Liam Dawson’s fabulous List A best 142 off 116 balls.
Hampshire, winners of this competition in 2018, will face Worcestershire at Trent Bridge on September 20 after the Rapids beat Somerset at home and the visitors won here by 18 runs on Duckworth Lewis Stern.
In reply to Hampshire’s 304-6, which saw England Test all-rounder Dawson brilliantly recover his side from 78-4 inside 20 overs, Pakistani opener Imam-Ul-Haq impressed for 105 off 97 balls in his farewell appearance for the White Rose.
And Yorkshire were well placed at 171-3 in the 31st over chasing that revised 254-target in 41 overs following two half-hour rain delays.
But they lost two wickets in a Scott Currie over, including Imam run out, and Hampshire squeezed impressively, with the hosts finishing on 235-8.
Currie, who struck twice with his seam, had earlier contributed his own List A best 61 not out off 40 balls. Dawson’s left-arm spin also accounted for two wickets.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Matt Milnes claimed three early wickets as Yorkshire started this semi-final well.
Yorkshire started well, Matt Milnes dominating as Hampshire slipped having been inserted.
Seamer Milnes, having claimed a career best seven for 38 in last Sunday’s group-stage win over Sussex at Hove, claimed the first three here, including forcing visiting captain Nick Gubbins to play on with his third ball in the day’s second over.
He then removed Fletcha Middleton and Ali Orr before George Hill’s seam also forced Ben Brown to play on.
Dawson came in at 53-3 in the 12th over and offered a sharp return catch to Ben Cliff on six, clearly a key moment.
The 35-year-old was the glue which held the innings together before exploding late on.
He shared 89 for the fifth wicket with 17-year-old Ben Mayes, whose 37 helped to turn the tide, before sixth-wicket partner Currie pressed the accelerator.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. One of those wickets for Matt Milnes was Fletcha Middleton, caught at wide mid-off by a diving captain Dom Bess.
Shortly after Dawson reached his fourth List A century off 103 balls, Currie’s maiden List A fifty came in 35 as Hampshire pushed on from 180-5 after 40 overs.
Dawson finished with seven sixes and hit strongly down the ground and over cover and long-on, while both he and Currie improvised as they shared 136 inside the last 13 overs of the innings. Seventy five runs came off the last five overs.
Milnes came off the field at the start of the last over having felt his groin whilst chasing a ball down to the boundary, but he did bat later on. Yorkshire will assess him ahead of the return to Championship cricket a week tomorrow. Meanwhile, Ben Coad’s recent hamstring injury means he is touch and go to play again this season. He confirmed that news whilst commentating on BBC Radio today.
Kyle Abbott and Brad Wheal then bowled very tidily with the new ball, restricting Adam Lyth and Imam to 43-0 in the 13th over when the rain arrived.
A half-hour delay through to 4.25pm was followed by Lyth edging the second ball back behind off Eddie Jack – 47-1.
Imam, leaving for national commitments after this game – his last for the county in 2025, then calmly advanced the hosts to 98-1 after 20 overs with a 52-ball fifty.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWPix.com. Yorkshire’s players warm up with a football this morning at North Marine Road.
Strong off his legs, the left-hander then united with Will Luxton to share 99.
Luxton pulled a couple of sixes, including one the first ball back after the second half-hour rain break. But he chopped on to Jack with the second, falling for 30 – 146-2 in the 28th over.
James Wharton holed out to Currie shortly afterwards before Imam reached his fourth ton of this season’s campaign off 96 balls.
But Wharton and Imam fell, alongside Fin Bean, as Yorkshire lost a defining three wickets for 10 inside two overs to slip to 171-5 in the 32nd, still needing 83.
Imam was run out by a combination of Jack from mid-wicket and bowler Currie after Bean pulled and non-striker Imam slipped. Yorkshire then lost Hill and Harry Duke in successive balls to Wheal and Dawson and, seven wickets down, needed 47 off 4.5 overs. From there, they fell away, with Dawson striking again.
Yorkshire finish this competition having won seven of nine games in both the group stages and the semi-finals.
