Lancashire fun in the sun, but its Foxes on fire in 20/20 cricket

Jun 25 2009 by David Prentice, Maghull and Aintree Star

Lancashire fun in the sun, but its Foxes on fire

LIVERPOOL Cricket Club has witnessed plenty in its 202 years.

Stroke play from the legendary WG Grace, an incredible 364 from Wally Hammond – even an England football international against Ireland.

But nothing quite like this.

Liverpool’s lovely home played host to Twenty20 cricket for the first time on Monday night – and though the great Doctor Grace was an innovator, even WG might have frowned at warm-up bikes on the pavilion terrace, cricketers clad in red, green and yellow and cover drives to the boundary greeted by pop music with the lyrics “This sex is on fire!”

But the capacity crowd loved it – even though Lancashire lost their first Twenty20 match of the season at the seventh attempt.

Jim Allenby was the match’s major influence.

With the majority of the sell-out crowd hoping to see Freddie Flintoff show a return to the form which will upset the Aussies this summer, it was a Western Australian who qualifies for England who upstaged him.

Allenby was already the top run scorer in this year’s competition and an impressive 69 took his total to 354 in seven knocks.

After top-edging Flintoff’s second ball over the head of wicketkeeper Gareth Cross for four, he lofted Lancashire’s attack all over Aigburth, taking just 29 balls to reach his 50 and ensuring Leicestershire reached 61 off just six overs. But Lancashire managed to slow the rate before it raced out of control.

The Foxes scored just eight runs between the 12th and 14th overs and Allenby, who hit six fours and four sixes, finally went when he tried to sweep Stephen Parry – last seen in these parts for Firwood Bootle and Northern – and bottom-edged into Cross’ gloves.

His departure, plus Flintoff returning for two overs at the death which cost just six runs, kept the Foxes down to a far from formidable 146 – although a last ball misfield for four hinted that perhaps it wasn’t going to be Lancashire’s night.

The visitors began poorly, however, with left-armer Harry Gurney’s first over costing 14 after three balls were called wide and Steven Croft carved him for two boundaries.