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Alright. Lancashire Lightning are through to the finals day and they will face Yorkshire Vikings in the semis. It's always been an edge-of-the-seat thriller when these two teams faced each other in the past and it remains to be seen what we have in store in Edgbaston next week. Now, it's time to end our coverage and until next time, this is Pragadeesh and Pradeep saying goodbye and goodnight
Steven Croft: Yeah to fair it was a little bit scratchy a the start. I thought 160-170 is par but we felt that the shorter boundaries are easily accessible. They have got some dangerous bowlers but we handled them smartly. I think our bowlers bowled very smartly, they bowled into the pitch and got rewarded.
Steven Croft is adjudged as the Man of the Match
Dane Vilas (Captain, Lancashire): Obviously Croft played a brilliant innings for us. There were a lot of places we did well, we took good catches and bowled well to restrict them in the end. When you have a player like Croft you don't worry too much, he was just relentless with his hitting and did the job for us tonight.
Simon Harmer (Captain, Essex): I thought 160 was enough but then Croft and Vilas, the man sitting next to me put us out of the game, they were hitting the boundaries at ease. We take a lot of positive from this tournament, that's the thing, players like Pepper, Rossington and Critchley are the positives and Walter has been a revelation for us this season.
Lancashire Lightning defeat Essex Eagles by 7 wickets
It's all Lancashire Lightning right from the start. When they came to bat Jennings got out in an unlucky fashion in the first over, but Salt and Croft tore the Eagles' bowlers apart in the powerplay. It was raining boundaries and sixes in the middle and the bowlers had no clue on how to stop the carnage.
The duo did the damage in the powerplay and they didn't stop their ruthless approach even after the field is spread. Critchley found a way to dismiss Phillip Salt but that was all down to some superb presence of mind from Michael Pepper near the boundary.
Big players step up on big occasions as Steven Croft brought up his half-century. The skipper Dane Vilas came to the crease and the fireworks continued even after Salt's dismissal. Both the batters targeted the shorter boundary and the pitch got better for batting once the match progressed. The slow deliveries by the pacers didn't hold on to the surface, instead, it was sitting up nicely and asking to be punished Vilas scored a half-century and Tim David finished things in style with a lovely cover drive
15.4 Simon Harmer to Tim David, FOUR! LANCASHIRE ARE THROUGH TO THE SEMI-FINALS! Length delivery on the outside off, David lunges and creams it through the extra-cover, the sweeper stood no chance as it races away to the fence for a boundary as David puts the finishing touches. Lancashire were just ruthless with the bat and finishes a comprehensive victory!
15.4 Simon Harmer to Tim David, WIDE! Fires the full delivery down the leg-side, the keeper stops it and it's called a wide.
15.3 Simon Harmer to Tim David, good length delivery, turning into David on the middle and off, presses to keep it out.
What are the odds of Tim David taking a single now?
Tim David, RHB, walks in at no.5
15.2 Simon Harmer to Dane Vilas, OUT! PICKS OUT DEEP MID-WICKET AND GONE! End of a sensational inning from Vilas, he's done the job. Good length on the outside off, Vilas had to reach for it to sweep but doesn't get hold of it as the fielder goes low to dive forward to grab that.
The physio is out in the middle as Vilas has hurt his right finger
15.1 Simon Harmer to Dane Vilas, tossed up a full toss on the leg-stump, follows the batter as Vilas skips down the track and clipped it to deep square-leg, they come back for a brace and with that Vilas gets to his FIFTY, what an innings from the skipper!
Looks like this contest would be all over now in this over
15
overs
155/2score
1
2
6
1
3
1
runs
Steven Croft
76(48)
Dane Vilas*
49(21)
Matt Critchley
1/48
14.6 Matt Critchley to Dane Vilas, short and wide outside off, Vilas waits and cuts it to deep point for a single, retains the strike.
14.5 Matt Critchley to Steven Croft, OH! Extra-bounce, drops it short on the outside off, Croft was looking to cut but gets a thick outside edge down to third-man as they scamper back for the third.
14.4 Matt Critchley to Dane Vilas, good length on the middle and off, Vilas lunges and glances it to short fine-leg for a quick single.
Again Vilas targeting the shorter side. Just two hits away
14.3 Matt Critchley to Dane Vilas, SIX! BOOM! Drags the length short on the off-stump, Vilas clears his front foot as he sits deep inside the crease and MUSCLED it over deep mid-wicket fence for a maximum.
14.2 Matt Critchley to Dane Vilas, turning away this time, good length delivery on the outside off, Vilas cuts it to deep backward point, they hare back for the brace.