Cricket: Yorkshire to face Sri Lankan champions in T20 finals

Yorkshire won through to the tournament’s qualifying stage by reaching the Twenty20 Cup final in Cardiff on Saturday.

The qualifying stage features six teams split into two groups, with the group winners advancing to the competition proper.

Yorkshire are in qualifying group two and will play the winners of the ongoing Sri Lanka Premier League in Johannesburg on 
October 9.

The following day they will take on Trinidad & Tobago at Centurion (5.30pm).

The other qualifying group comprises Twenty20 Cup winners Hampshire, Auckland Aces and Sialkot Stallions, while the eight already confirmed entrants for the main tournament are Perth Scorchers, Sydney Sixers, Highveld Lions, Titans, Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.

Teams play four games in the group stage, which runs from October 13-23, with the top four sides contesting the semi-finals.

If they reach the group stage, Yorkshire will play Sydney Sixers on October 16 at Centurion, Mumbai Indians on October 18 at Centurion, Highveld Lions on October 20 at Johannesburg and Chennai Super Kings on October 22 in Durban.

Yorkshire would receive a guaranteed participation fee of £128,000 by qualifying for the main tournament, which offers £1.6m to the winning team.

It will certainly be a very different Yorkshire side that takes part in the money-spinning Twenty20 competition from the one that saw service at Scarborough yesterday.

Following their Twenty20 Finals Day exertions, Yorkshire rested several players, including captain Andrew Gale, with Gary Ballance leading the team and 18-year-old batsman Jack Leaning handed his List A debut.

Ballance got the first part of the captain’s job right by winning the toss and, after surveying leaden skies, he asked Warwickshire to bat.

Yorkshire, however, were not at their best with the ball or in the field – not helped by the fact Rich Pyrah fell awkwardly on his left hand early in the piece and took no further part.

Warwickshire totalled 211-6, Tim Ambrose top-scoring with an unbeaten 87 from 64 balls with nine fours and a six, Darren Maddy contributing 44 and Will Porterfield 43.

Steve Patterson was Yorkshire’s best bowler with 3-25 from six overs; otherwise, no one conceded less than six runs an over.

Yorkshire’s reply began badly when Adam Lyth fell lbw to the fourth delivery bowled by Neil Carter.

Ballance offered hope with a sizzling 68 from 50 balls with five sixes but the next highest score was 23, Carter finishing with 4-16.

Lancashire opener Tom Smith smashed one of the quickest one-day centuries in history before a rain-curtailed fixture against Worcestershire was abandoned at New Road.

The 26-year-old (106) raced to three figures from 44 balls with eight fours and 10 sixes – equal fifth fastest in List A matches.