10:00 PM IST, 5:30 PM Local Time: NEVER SAY NEVER IN CRICKET! GLAMORGAN has plucked a win from the jaws of defeat. Liam Livingstone did everything in his powers to convert this for Lancashire, but after a series of ups and downs, Chris Cooke and Timm van der Gugten have pulled off a masterclass, taking Glamorgan to a 2 wicket win on the final ball of the innings.
Choosing to bowl first backfired heavily for Glamorgan as Lancashire's batting unit clicked ruthlessly on a true Blackpool surface. While openers Keaton Jennings (28) and Marcus Harris (25) laid a steady foundation, it was the Liam Livingstone masterclass that completely altered the trajectory of the game. Livingstone was in a devastating mood, brutalizing the Glamorgan attack for an extraordinary 81 off just 37 balls, a knock punctuated by a whopping 8 sixes.
Glamorgan's bowlers found themselves with very small margins for error. Dan Douthwaite (2/57) and Nathan McAndrew (2/53) picked up wickets but leaked runs at over 13 an over under the pressure of Livingstone's onslaught. The only real saving grace for the Welsh county was veteran all-rounder Jimmy Neesham, who bowled with immense control, registering superb figures of 3/24 across his 4 overs to restrict Lancashire to 201 when a total north of 220 looked well within reach.
Glamorgan's response had seen flashes of intent, but Lancashire had managed to strike at regular intervals to keep a lid on the chase. Will Smale provided a quick burst of 26 off 15 balls including 3 sixes, and captain Kiran Carlson showed urgency with a brief 18. However, they couldn't convert those starts into the massive, match defining partnership required when hunting down a score above 200. Sean Dickson carried the scoring rate in the middle overs, striking at 140, scoring 44 off 31 balls, with 4 fours and 3 sixes. However, after the dismissal of Sean Dickson, the entire Glamorgan innings seemed to be crashing down.
Tom Hartley and Liam Livingstone put up a real choke-hold on the Glamorgan run chase in the second half of the middle overs, where Tom Hartley bowled 4 overs for 30 runs and Liam Livingstone bowled 4 overs for 3 wickets and just 13 runs, including a wicket maiden in the 16th over. Wickets were falling from one end, while, Chris Cooke was getting set. In the last 11 balls, Chris Cooke, took on the bowling, swinging at everything and connecting everything. Timm van der Gugten too played a solid hand, finding boundaries at will and taking the visitors home with 4 needed off 1 ball.
Glamorgan have pulled a win from jaws of defeat on consecutive games now. With this win, Glamorgan find themselves mid table with 3 wins in 6 games, while, Lancashire are reeling at the bottom of the North Group with just one win in 5 games.