Liam Patterson-White took his second five-wicket haul in as many matches at Grantham before Matt Montgomery’s crucial 54 steered Notts Outlaws to a nail-biting two-wicket victory over Durham.

Patterson-White returned figures of 5-45, no fewer than four of which were via LBW, to confirm a bowling average of just 6.40 across 20 overs at Gorse Lane as Durham were dismissed for 226 in 45 overs.

Liam Trevaskis hit an unbeaten 59, but no other visiting batter passed 40 as Patterson-White’s quintuple was backed up by three scalps from Zak Chappell.

Montgomery then enjoyed a stand of 74 with Lyndon James, who made 35, but repeated wickets put hearts in mouths all around the Lincolnshire venue as the game drew to a thrilling conclusion.

It fell to an unbroken ninth-wicket stand of 21 between Chappell and Brett Hutton to steer the Outlaws home with two overs to spare and seal a third victory of the Royal London Cup campaign.

Earlier, visiting captain Scott Borthwick had won the toss and opted to bat, though the Outlaws found immediate joy when Brett Hutton took only four balls to remove Graham Clark, caught by Montgomery in the slips.

Regular wickets from Patterson-White checked Durham’s progress throughout the remainder of the first half of their innings, as several batters made starts but found themselves unable to push on against the spinner.

Nic Maddinson and Borthwick were the most classic examples of that as both passed 30 before finding themselves all at sea against Patterson-White’s spin as both were trapped lbw.

The duo were only the first two to fall in that manner to Patterson-White, as Sean Dickson and Tom Mackintosh both succumbed in identical fashion, the latter for a golden duck that confirmed the spinner’s five-for.

In between, Paul Coughlin had nicked to Montgomery, in a turn of events that left Durham 135/6, and the catcher then turned wicket-taker himself as he saw Mitchell Killeen held by Haseeb Hameed.

Chappell then cleaned up the tail with the final three wickets to fall, pinning George Drissell in front before yorking Oliver Gibson and seeing Chris Rushworth feather through to Dane Schadendorf.

With the innings wrapped short of the allocated overs, Notts then set about chasing down the target, and though Ben Slater was bowled early on, Sol Budinger played a typically flamboyant innings in an attempt to set the tone.

He hit a 25-ball 35 which featured three sixes to power the Outlaws past 50 inside the first eight overs, though once he and Hameed had fallen to put the hosts at 76/4, the requirement became keeping the chase on track.

Montgomery and James were up to that job, with a half-century stand that was brought up in 71 balls, as both played maturely in the knowledge that few risks were needed with the scoring rate still up to scratch.

The runs ticked down as Notts passed the halfway mark, though Durham struck back through Rushworth with the lbw of James before Killeen bowled Patterson-White.

Fateh Singh and Montgomery continued to chip away at the runs, as the former blasted two sixes and the latter reached a well-crafted half-century off 79 balls to see the Outlaws beyond 200.

Both fell within three overs of each other with 21 still needed, but the platform previously laid meant the run rate remained steadfastly manageable, and Chappell and Hutton were able to guide the hosts over the line.

It took the duo a little under six overs to hit the runs that did so, with Chappell in particular reducing the pressure with a giant six off the final ball of Scott Borthwick’s seventh over.

With few nails remaining amongst the Gorse Lane crowd, the winning moment then finally arrived with 12 balls to spare as Chappell bullishly lofted Maddinson down the ground for two to formally seal victory.

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The Royal London Cup Final

The timeless pomp, ceremony and tradition of county cricket's historic 50-over final. 18 First-Class counties go head-to-head in this prestigious competition, aiming to emerge with the spoils at our historic venue. Secure your seats here...