Vitality Blast T20 Northamptonshire vs Derbyshire: Skipper Josh Cobb’s 70 and Taylor’s triple strike put Northants on top

Tom Taylor struck thrice in the first inning, to which Josh Cobb added cushion with the bat in the second one to steal the win from Derbyshire.

The Falcons batting first didn’t have a desirable start as they ended up losing two wickets in the powerplay for 40 runs as Taylor and Ben Sanderson dismissed both the openers. Hayden Kerr and Leus du Plooy made 39 off 29, but Freddie Heldreich broke the partnership by dismissing du Plooy (19). Two dropped catch-outs survivor Wayne Madsen and Alex Hughes looked to build another significant partnership as they struck 50 from 33, but Taylor soon turned the game. With both the batters looking to hit big, Tom Taylor took three wickets of Wayne Madsen, Alex Hughes and Mattie Kiernan for 37, 17 and 1 run, respectively, in the 17th over of the game. After this, the team couldn’t capitalise in the death overs to expand the total to post a challenging target. They dragged the scoreboard to 151/9 in 20 overs. 

Hayden Kerr dismissed Chris Lynn on the first ball of the inning for a duck in response. Skipper Josh Cobb took to the field to anchor the inning alongside Ben Curran. Josh Cobb was usually deprived of opportunities in the Blast because of Lynn’s power-hitting performances. But he made most of the chance by stitching 55 runs in 39 balls before George Scrimshaw dismissed Ben Curran. Sam Conners took Saif Saib while Josh Cobb scored 70 off 44, comprising six boundaries and three sixes, before being trapped by Scrimshaw. The remaining was majorly chased by James Neesham (20) and Rob Keogh (28*). Thus, the team reached the total in 18.1 overs at the loss of five wickets to find their fourth win.

Northamptonshire and Northamptonshire are placed second and seventh in the points table. Northamptonshire will continue the winning streak against Worcestershire, whereas Derbyshire will look for a comeback against Leicestershire, with both the fixtures being on 9th June 2022.