Rain Abandons Durham vs Nottinghamshire Clash at Trent Bridge

Torrential rain has forced the abandonment of the North Group clash between Nottinghamshire Outlaws and Durham at Trent Bridge, with only five overs possible.

The scheduled 2.30pm start was delayed due to wet weather, with the match eventually getting underway at 4pm with a reduced 17-over format. Outlaws skipper Joe Clarke opted to bowl first, and Durham openers Alex Lees and Graham Clark made a flying start, putting on 58 runs in just five overs.

Clark was particularly aggressive, hitting two boundaries in Olly Stone's opening over and another two in his second, before pulling a huge six into the Fox Round stand. New Zealand left-armer Ben Lister completed the fifth over of the Durham innings, but rain returned with a vengeance, accompanied by thunder and lightning.

The storm was short-lived, but it deposited so much water on the playing area that umpires Paul Baldwin and James Middlebrook had no option but to call the game off. The Outlaws, who had broken their duck for the season against Worcestershire on Friday night, take another point for a no-result.

Bottom of the table with only three points at the halfway stage, the Outlaws' chances of qualifying for the knock-out stages appear slim. However, in an open group where no team apart from leaders Lancashire Lightning has more than six points, a string of wins in the second half of the season could still see them go through.

The same applies to Durham, third from bottom but on five points, only one behind second-placed Yorkshire Vikings.

Tags: #Cricket, #NorthGroup, #RainDelay, #Durham, #Nottinghamshire