It may be regarded as too little too late, but Yorkshire Carnegie, led by a superb 114 from Jonny Bairstow, put in an excellent performance at Lord's to beat Middlesex Panthers by 22 runs in the CB40.

Chasing 253 to win the Panthers went down fighting as they were all out with 2 overs still to play. Paul Stirling with 68 runs in 47 balls and with 10 fours and a six bolstered the Middlesex reply after the early loss of Scott Newman who was bowled by Ryan Sidebottom for 4.

David Malan thought himself unfortunate to be adjudged lbw to Adil Rashid for 14 and Chris Rogers went the same way for 11 to make the score 77-3 in the 11th over. Stirling went at short cover held by Richard Pyrah off David Wainwright and when Neil Dexter was c Wainwright off Rashid for 27. Jamie Dalrymple made 14 and John Simpson 12 before the former was run out by a direct hit from keeper Jonny Bairstow and the latter returned for a second only to be beaten by a good return from Jacques Rudolph in the deep and the Middlesex fight looked over at 160-7 in the 26th over.

But Steven Crook and Tom Smith had other ideas as they added 66 for the 8th wicket in 9.3 overs to give the Tykes cause for concern. Smith made 27 from 30 deliveries before finding Sidebottom off Pyrah but Crook continued to take the total to 248-8 with with 3.2 overs left.

Middlesex couldn't find the line though after Crook was caught by Andrew Gale to become Sidebottom's second scalp and Tim Murtagh was caught by Gary Ballance to give Pyrah his second wicket and Yorkshire secured a win by 22 runs. 

Middlesex had won the toss and asked Yorkshire to bat first and experienced early joy when Gale edged Corey Collymore behind to the fifth ball of the first over and the Tykes were 0-1. From then on it was all Yorkshire and Bairstow, who made his maiden List A hundred as he led the Tykes to 275-4 in their 40 overs at Lord's.

First it was Rudolph and Bairstow who combined to add 85 for the 2nd wicket in 14.3 overs before Rudolph was caught by Stirling off Crook for 40 from 50 balls.

Anthony McGrath is enjoying a renaissance after his century at the Rose Bowl last week. The quality is coming back fast and he enjoyed a stand of 105 with Bairstow as he led the way through that partnership with 63 from 60 balls. When he finally went caught at cover by Dalrymple off Murtagh Yorkshire were 190-3 in the 32nd over.

Bairstow was playing the one-day knock of his life. Earlier in the season after never scoring a Championship century he went past three figures at Trent Bridge and ended up on 205. Today he went past his first List A half century only to progress to a beautifully crafted 114.

He was the 4th man out when he was bowled by Neil Dexter but his stay at the crease of 87 balls which saw him belt 9 fours and 3 sixes is testament to his temperament, talent and genuine class. He had reached his century with a six and for a period looked like he might take Yorkshire near 300, but his dismissal left Gary Ballance (34) and Ajmal Shahzad (15) to see the innings through to close.

???It was Yorkshire's best performance with the bat in List A cricket this summer and it's a shame it comes when qualification is out of reach. This team though boasts a great deal of talent and in time (hopefully next summer) they should be genuine contenders in one-day cricket.

JAMES BUTTLER

MATCH INFORMATION

START TIME CHANGE

As a result of concerns over public safety, and following discussions with the ECB, Yorkshire County Cricket Club and the  MCC, Middlesex County Cricket Club have agreed adjustments to the scheduled start time for tomorrow's (Wed 10th August) CB40 match at Lord’s.

This match, originally scheduled to begin at 3.40pm, will now start at 12 noon. Gates will be opened at 11.00am.

Those intending to visit Lord’s for this match are advised to check www.lords.org or www.middlesexccc.com website before they travel.

YORKSHIRE CARNEGIE SQUAD

Andrew GALE (c), Jacques RUDOLPH, Anthony McGRATH, Joe ROOT, Gary BALLANCE, Jonny BAIRSTOW (wk), Adil RASHID, Ajmal SHAHZAD, Richard PYRAH, Ryan SIDEBOTTOM, David WAINWRIGHT and Ben SANDERSON 

MATCH PREVIEW 

It’s pride that Yorkshire Carnegie are playing for in the CB40 now as any hopes of qualifying for the Semi-Finals have long gone. But a trip to Middlesex Panthers at the home of cricket, Lord’s, a venue many of Yorkshire’s young side have not played at before should provide the Tykes with the motivation they require to get a positive result.