Derbyshire v Northamptonshire T20

Derbyshire lost by 3 runs

Northamptonshire 155-6 (Levi 42, Cobb 48, Hughes 2-23, White 2-25)
Derbyshire 140-5 in 18 chasing 144 to win (Durston 60)

Northamptonshire won by 3 runs on D/L

To be fair to Graeme Welch at the end of this one, he called it as it was. As we did the Durham game at Derby, we blew a game that was there for the taking. At 103-4 in 13 overs, we needed 41 from five overs, which most sides would deem a breeze in this format.

I won't take anything away from Northamptonshire, who bowled with common sense and skill in those last few overs, but we should have done better than that. With clean strikers like Thakor, Hughes, Knight and White unused, it seemed like such a waste. We either seem to panic in these situations and slog at everything, or fail to realise the gradual runs/balls equation is slipping away from us.

Azharullah is a canny, experienced bowler and we should have gone for it in the penultimate over, at the very least. We didn't - and a three-win season, that could quite easily have been a much-improved five-win one, looks like staying that way.

Alex Hughes and Wayne White again bowled well and both have made positive contributions to the side in this competition. Wes Durston has too and again led from the front with a captain's innings. Hamish Rutherford has made good starts in the matches he played, but will need to learn to go on from there and play the match defining innings.

Disappointing then, sad to relate.

And much work to do to become genuine contenders in the format.