Inspiration sorely needed after Yorkshire continue dismal run

The options listed are 1) Yes, 2) No, 3) Don’t care about T20.

Option No 3 would be a personal choice but Option No 2 could well experience some heavy traffic following a fifth defeat in 10 group games.

A more pertinent question would be: What can Yorkshire do to turn around their fortunes?

Answers on a postcard to Headingley Carnegie, where Yorkshire are growing increasingly desperate for a victory – any sort of victory – to help get their season back on track.

Second-bottom of the Championship, second-bottom of the Twenty20 North Group and third-bottom of their CB40 group, they are struggling on all fronts.

Yorkshire have won only six of 24 competitive games all season – three of those against a Worcestershire side who could hardly be called world-beaters.

The need for a morale-boost is palpable.

For a time it looked as though it might arrive at Grace Road, where Yorkshire made a decent start to last night’s tomfoolery.

They reached 60-1 from seven overs after being sent into bat and would have been eyeing a total of at least 175 from that position.

Instead they lost their way in disappointing manner as Leicestershire determinedly pegged them back.

Yorkshire were dismissed for 144 from the final ball of their innings, Andrew Gale’s 67 the standout contribution as the captain struck his third half-century in this year’s competition.

In reply, Leicestershire matched Yorkshire’s rapid start and crucially maintained the momentum to romp to an eight-wicket win with 22 balls to spare.

Openers Joshua Cobb and Andrew McDonald set the tone with a stand of 74 in eight overs, at which point only four runs separated the sides.

But whereas Yorkshire managed only 23 runs between the 10th and 15th overs of their innings, Leicestershire continued plundering.

McDonald top-scored with an unbeaten 59 from 47 balls after he had earlier returned the best figures of 3-18, while Cobb lashed 46 from 25 deliveries and James Taylor an undefeated 33 from 22.

In front of just 2,000 spectators on an evening that began cloudy before being visited by glorious sunshine, Yorkshire handed a first Twenty20 appearance of the season to Joe Sayers.

The opener replaced the out-of-sorts Anthony McGrath, while pace bowler Ryan Sidebottom was recalled following Tim Bresnan’s return to the England squad.

Sayers began in positive mode, punching his first ball from Abdul Razzaq to the cover boundary with high panache.

The left-hander then carved Harry Gurney for a one-bounce four over backward-point before dancing down the track to hoist Razzaq for four over mid-off.

It was entertaining stuff from a man typecast as a four-day specialist and it took a touch of misfortune to end his innings on 18.

Matthew Hoggard got Sayers to drag a wide ball into his stumps to leave Yorkshire 38-1 in the fifth over.

Gale struck Hoggard for three successive fours during the former England man’s second over on a night when Gale played a typically impressive hand: driving powerfully and nudging intelligently.

Yorkshire slipped to 73-2 in the ninth over when Adam Lyth played a fraction too early at a slower ball from McDonald and was caught at cover by Will Jefferson.

Jonny Bairstow became McDonald’s second victim when he was caught behind for one trying to steer behind square on the offside, at which point the Yorkshire innings became bogged down.

Gale did his best to up the tempo as he went to fifty from 41 balls with five fours but McDonald and Claude Henderson put the brakes on, left-arm spinner Henderson conceding just 22 runs from four overs.

After Gary Ballance was bowled trying to strike McDonald into the pavilion, Yorkshire promoted Ajmal Shahzad to No 6 in an effort to improve the scoring rate.

The tactic worked as Shahzad smashed spinner Cobb for four over cow corner and then thumped him straight for the only six of the innings.

Cobb got his revenge next ball, Shahzad picking out Jefferson at deep mid-wicket following an attractive knock of 20 from 11 deliveries.

Pyrah fell lbw to a delightful Razzaq slower ball, Sidebottom was run-out by Razzaq trying to steal a quick single before Gurney rounded things off with three wickets in the last over.

The left-arm pace bowler had Gale caught at deep mid-wicket following a 57-ball innings that included six fours before bowling Joe Root as the batsman swung to leg and then yorking last man Adil Rashid.

Pyrah was Yorkshire’s only wicket-taker, the all-rounder having Cobb caught at mid-off and Jefferson caught-and-bowled inches from the turf.

Shahzad conceded 43 from his three overs – including 19 from the final over of power play as Cobb launched him for two successive fours and a six over mid-wicket towards the obligatory bouncy castle.