Notts Outlaws claimed a convincing 92-run victory over Northants Steelbacks in the first match of their Barbados tour.
Playing under lights at the 3Ws Oval in Bridgetown, the Outlaws powered their way to 172-6 before dismissing their opponents for just 80.
England T20 internationals Alex Hales and Michael Lumb set the foundation for a good score with an opening stand of 87 before James Taylor’s late cameo took the total beyond Northants’ reach.
The Steelbacks lost wickets regularly in their reply, to leave Mick Newell delighted with how the game had panned out.
Chasing an imposing 173, Northants had barely got out of the starting blocks before they were five wickets down with only 32 on the board.
“The pleasing thing was the way the two openers weighed the wicket up quite well and the four overs of quick bowling that Northants sent down they took for 68 which is quite remarkable in a game that was quite low-scoring outside of those overs,” he said.
“So credit to Hales and Lumb for spotting the opportunity and then Taylor played very well through to the end of the innings as well.”
After Chris Read had chosen to bat both Lumb and Hales kick-started their innings with impressive shots off the bowling of David Willey.
Lumb drove the left-armer powerfully to the long off fence before his partner heaved a mighty six over midwicket.
A savage assault then followed as Alex Wakeley rotated his bowlers without success. The initial six-over power-play produced 81 runs with the rope cleared six times.
The two batsmen had added an undefeated 146 on the previous occasion they had opened together, for England in New Zealand last month.
That run was extended to 233 before Lumb fell for 33 (20 balls, 3x4, 2x6), bowled by one that turned sharply from Matthew Spriegel and kept a touch low.
Having been on the back-foot and staring at a total in excess of 200 Northants then struck back in impressive fashion with three more wickets in the space of six deliveries.
Hales, having just passed his half-century was given out lbw to Con de Lange. His 53 had come from 30 balls with four fours and as many sixes.
Riki Wessels (2) and Steven Mullaney (0) both fell in the same James Middlebrook over and it became 113-5 when Chris Read (8) was run out at the bowlers end after a deflected shot from Taylor.
Sam Wood (7) was taken at point by a diving Wakeley, off Rob Keogh but the same bowler was then clubbed for a four and three sixes by Taylor (46 not out from 34 deliveries) in the nineteeth over.
Chasing an imposing 173, Northants had barely got out of the starting blocks before they were five wickets down with only 32 on the board.
Ajmal Shahzad’s first wicket for Notts was that of Steven Crook (1) who was caught in the deep by Steven Mullaney.
New man Alex Wakeley suffered the worst possible punishment, run out without scoring after a stunning direct hit from short fine leg by Andy Carter.
Glowing with pride after such a fine piece of work Carter then yorked Rob Newton (17) and Ben Duckett (0) in his next over.
Spin had reaped dividends for Northants earlier, as they halted the Notts momentum. When Graeme White and Sam Wood joined forces for Notts it was equally impressive and effectively game over.
White returned figures of 3.4-1-10-4 and Wood’s four overs brought him 1-14.
David Willey (8) hit Mullaney for six but then fell next ball as the innings petered out with a whimper.
Fourteen deliveries remained unbowled as the Outlaws celebrated an emphatic victory. Coach Wayne Noon gave his opinion on the performance, “One word – clinical!”
Notts will now play against Yorkshire Vikings in the second semi-final of the Barbados T20 Cup, a match that will begin at 12.30pm local time.
The side’s met at the same stage of last year’s competition, with Notts coming up short, a result that Newell would like to over-turn.
“It’s not the end of the world whatever happens tomorrow but we’d like to win the competition, we’d like to have the opportunity of playing two matches at Kensington Oval.
“That would be a great experience for the players but I won’t take too much out of the result but we owe Yorkshire one – they beat us twice last year in T20 cricket and we’d certainly like to turn them over.”