In a gripping encounter on Tuesday in T20 Vitality Blast, Yorkshire triumphed over Nottinghamshire by eight runs.
After being asked to field first, Nottinghamshire left-arm pacer, Shaheen Shah Afridi, showcased his skill and precision during his first spell. Despite narrowly missing out on a wicket, he proved to be a formidable force, conceding a mere five runs in his two overs.
During his first over, Shaheen induced three plays and misses, demonstrating his ability to deceive and trouble the Yorkshire batsmen. He maintained his tight line and length, registering eight dot balls, adding pressure on the opposition.
Yorkshire, however, managed to survive Shaheen's early thunderbolts and looked to stabilize their innings. It was in the last over of the powerplay that they suffered a setback, losing two wickets. The team then relied on their skipper, Shan Masood, to anchor the innings, and he rose to the occasion admirably.
Masood partnered with David Malan, forming a crucial 50-run partnership that laid the foundation for Yorkshire's innings. Masood played aggressively, taking charge of the scoring. In just 23 balls, he accumulated 34 runs, hitting two sixes and an equal number of fours. Although Matthew Montgomery managed to dismiss Masood, he had already constructed a solid platform for Malan to build upon.
With the perfect launchpad provided by Masood, Malan took charge and played a magnificent unbeaten innings. He scored a remarkable 95 runs, showcasing his class and composure. Malan's knock propelled Yorkshire to a respectable total of 182-7 in their allotted 20 overs.
Shaheen was finally rewarded with a wicket of Jordan Thompson in his last over, thus finishing with figures of 1/29 in his four-over spell.
Despite Alex Hales’ 53-run knock and Colin Munro’s 46, Nottinghamshire failed to chase the target, ending up with 174/4 in 20 overs.