Two scorching innings from Jacques Rudolph, 83, above, and Anthony McGrath, 77 not out, gave Yorkshire Carnegie an advantage they never relinquished against Northamtonshire Steelbacks in the Clydesdale Bank 40 match at Scarborough.

In a contest marred by bitter cold and interruptions for rain, Yorkshire eventually romped home by 35 runs under the Duckworth Lewis system for calculating weather-hit matches to leave them with two wins out of two in the competition.

WATCH THE MATCH HIGHLIGHTS ON WHITE ROSE TV HERE

Yorkshire made 240-3 in 30 overs - and a stoppage for rain after two overs of the Northamptonshire innings left the visitors a revised target of 154 in 16 overs. It was much too tough a task, and in fading light they were dismissed for 118 in their final over.

Rob White was their only batsman to cause any real problems with a fierce 69 off 47 balls with nine fours and a six, but Yorkshire were always well on top - Tino Best capturing the first and last wickets to fall and Richard Pyrah picking up three wickets in one over, including that of White. 

Jacques Rudolph was once again in sparkling form after Yorkshire were put in to bat, and the South African left-hander, who made an unbeaten 101 last Sunday and followed up with 228 not out against Durham at Headingley Carnegie in mid-week, this time lashed 83.

A torrential burst of rain after Yorkshire had thumped 39 without loss in five overs, reduced the match to 30-overs-a-side but Andrew Gale’s men were still able to set their opponents a challenging target of 245 for victory under the Duckworth Lewis method.

The unexpected rain and bleak weather came as a big disappointment to the Scarborough club, which has done superb work on tidying up the ground during the close season, their refurbishment of the Press box being much appreciated by the media men.

Gale and Rudolph made a blistering start, although Gale had a life when he edged Jack Brooks and was put down by wicket-keeper Paul Harrison. Runs continued to flow on the resumption, and 61 had come by the eighth over when  Gale skied David Lucas straight into the air and was caught by Andrew Hall for 35 off 25 balls with seven fours.

Adam Lyth made a plucky 24 in a 54 stand with Rudolph before being run out, and McGrath then helped to continue the spree. The third-wicket pair had added 95 in only 11 overs when Rudolph was caught at long-on off Hall after facing 78 balls and striking seven fours and a six.

McGrath began to middle the ball, and he came in unbeaten on 77 from 50 deliveries with seven fours and two sixes, 49 runs gushing from the three overs of the batting power play.

* Yorkshire have agreed to start their Championship match against Essex at Scarborough on Tuesday at 11.30am instead of 11.0 because the visitors will be travelling to the resort late on Monday evening.

DAVID WARNER

YORKSHIRE SQUAD v NORTHANTS in Clydesdale Bank 40

Andrew Gale (Capt), Jacques Rudolph, Adam Lyth, Anthony McGrath, Gerard Brophy (wk), Adil Rashid, Richard Pyrah, David Wainwright, Tino Best, Steve Patterson, Ben Sanderson, Azeem Rafiq and Joe  Sayers

MATCH PREVIEW

It is earlier in the season than we have become accustomed to, but Andrew Gale will lead his Yorkshire side to the East Coast full of confidence after a stunning start to the season.

They will also be full of hope that North Marine Road Ground will continue to be the happy hunting ground it has become over the years. Yorkshire play Northamptonshire in the Clydesdale Bank 40 at Scarborough on Sunday and then play Essex in the 4-day LV= County Championship from Tuesday.

The Scarborough Cricket Club is keen to see facilities improved - however, raising money in today’s economic climate is a tough task. The promised resurgence of Scarborough will be judged by supporters over the coming months, but the hard work of the Scarborough Cricket Club over the winter months should be applauded. They have been greatly assisted by the ECB’s Nat West Cricket Force initiative, the local town council, the Yorkshire County Cricket Club, cricket supporters and Welcome to Yorkshire. The latter, Yorkshire’s rebranded tourism authority, have invested heavily in cricket at North Marine Road and in Scarborough as a tourist destination.

Welcome to Yorkshire, who are Yorkshire CCC’s LV= County Championship shirt sponsor in 2010, sponsored the Scarborough Cricket Festival last season and continue their support of the nation’s oldest cricket festival in 2010. They are also supporting the new outdoor theatre on Burniston Road, near Peasholm Park which will play host to two cricket themed productions this August – more to follow on www.yorkshireccc.com nearer the time.

The Yorkshire squad were busily preparing for the 2010 season in Barbados when volunteers descended on Scarborough Cricket Club for the NatWest CricketForce weekend at the end of March. The ECB’s NatWest CricketForce encourages cricket supporters, their friends and families to give something back to their local community cricket club by volunteering to undertake major renovations to clubhouses and grounds.

Armed with rollers, paintbrushes and scrapers over 300 volunteers, friends, families and local businesses attended across Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th to improve the ground’s facilities. They were joined by England’s James Anderson, Katherine Brunt, Jenny Gunn and Tamsine Ryan, Yorkshire CCC staff and Yorkshire Cricket Board staff who helped to paint walls, prepare and scrape railings, clean toilets and tidy up the famous old ground. Dickie Bird also pledged his support and helped paint the steps along with the Scarborough Town Crier, Alan Booth, who painted the toilet block on the Saturday.

After media criticism of the facilities at Scarborough last season the Natwest CricketForce weekend was crucial to the future of cricket on the East Coast. It is Yorkshire County Cricket Club’s long-term desire to preserve first-class county cricket at the North Marine Road venue, however amenities need to be maintained at a high enough standard to satisfy the needs of the thousands of supporters who visit the ground each year.
 
The Natwest Cricket Force was the start and Yorkshire County Cricket Club are committed to working with Scarborough Cricket Club, the local town council, the ECB and Welcome to Yorkshire to ensure further development and investment is made to enable first-class cricket to be played in Scarborough for many years to come.

Stewart Regan, Yorkshire CCC’s Chief Executive, said: “Given the magnificent weather we’ve had over the past two weeks and the excellent start we have made to the new season we hope that our members and supporters will come along to North Marine Road on Sunday and next week to support the Club. Scarborough Cricket Club have made significant strides in recent months in improving facilities and are committed to continuing this work with support from Scarborough Council and Welcome to Yorkshire. This is a key requirement within the proposed staging agreement by which Yorkshire CCC will continue to play cricket in the town for the next ten years.”

Regan continued: “We are all committed to working together to ensure we can continue to offer excellent cricket in a wonderful environment with the best possible facilities for our supporters.”