Mick Newell has predicted qualification for the quarter-finals in the Twenty20 Cup will go down to the wire - but believes the Outlaws win over Derbyshire Phantoms last night can set them on the road to the knock-out stages.

Graeme Swann’s devastating unbeaten 90 from 47 balls handed Notts their first win in the competition this year but the all-rounder and team-mate Ryan Sidebottom have now joined England as they prepare for the ICC World Twenty20.

Director of Cricket Newell has been forced to make changes to the squad to take on Durham Dynamos at the Riverside and with the opening partnership of Ali Brown and Alex Hales failing three times out of three, has opted to bring in Bilal Shafayat in a bid to get more runs without losing early wickets.

Said Newell: “We haven’t had success at the top of the order so far and it was the right time to change things around. We’ll see how Ali Brown gets on in a different role.

“It was important to get a win early on and get some confidence. The group is shaping up to be a tight one, and I expect there will be more ups and downs right through to the end of the group stages.”

Andre Adams is also available to join the squad after getting clearance from his ICL contract and recovering from a back problem.

If Adams had been picked by Notts before that clearance had been obtained, the Outlaws could have been banned from the Champions Twenty20 League if they were to qualify.

Newell added: “Andre is a very useful performer in all one-day cricket and it’s good to have him available.”

Squad:
Alex Hales, Bilal Shafayat, Ali Brown, Adam Voges, Samit Patel, Will Jefferson, Chris Read (capt/wkt), Mark Ealham, Andre Adams, Darren Pattinson, Luke Fletcher, Jason Brown.