Top two Hants & Lancs win again in One-Day Cup

Charli Knott and Georgia Adams shared a stand of 114 as One-Day Cup group leaders Hampshire edged home by three wickets against Warwickshire at Arundel.

Knott made 82 off 88 balls and Adams 68, but they had to rely on the lower order to see them home on 246-7 with four balls remaining.

Emma Lamb took her run total in the competition to 577 by making 82 for second-placed Lancashire as they beat Durham by 35 runs, with Sophie Morris claiming 5-33.

Bottom of the table Essex came up just short against Surrey at Chelmsford, losing by 14 runs despite a brilliant 73 not out from just 46 balls by Jo Gardner as they chased a target of 260.

The games were the final ones for all six teams until the tier one competition resumes on 24 July.

Once again, Lamb was the star performer with the bat for Lancashire as she passed 50 for the fourth game in a row before being bowled by spinner Katie Levick in the 30th over at Blackpool.

Phoebe Turner and Mady Villiers took three wickets each as the Red Rose were bowled out for 239 and despite losing Emma Marlow to the fourth ball of their reply, Suzi Bates and captain Hollie Armitage laid a solid base for their chase.

They put on 74 before Armitage was caught off Grace Potts for 47, but Bess Heath (45) helped Bates add 65 before the innings went into decline.

Heath was caught off Mahika Gaur and Morris bowled Bates for 63 with one that kept a little low to leave Durham on 170-6 and she and Kate Cross worked their way through the tail as the visitors were all out for 204 at the start of the 45th over.

It briefly looked like the win might take them to the top as Hampshire's chase against Warwickshire lost momentum following the loss of Knott and Adams.

Warwickshire's score of 243-7 was built on a stand of 97 between Abi Freeborn and Charis Pavely, who came together with the score on 93-6.

Pavely scored 55 before being stumped off Adams' off-spin, but Freeborn stayed to the end, hitting 12 fours in her 94 not out.

Hampshire lost both openers with 43 on the board but Australian Knott struck 12 boundaries, supported by the patient Adams, before she was caught off Georgia Davis, top edging a sweep.

Adams followed, bowled by Hannah Baker, and they needed 41 from the final seven overs.

Two more wickets fell but Mary Taylor's unbeaten 21 off 18 balls got them over the line - and both Hampshire and Lancashire now have six wins from eight games.

"There was some pressure towards the end but we stuck with it and went all the way until the end," said Taylor.

"Over the course of this block (of games) the girls have been brilliant and a pleasure to watch. We are such a young side so it is cool we have stepped up and got to the top of the table."

Essex - with only one win from their previous seven games - had Surrey in trouble on 117-6 but England's Ryana MacDonald-Gay and Kalea Moore pushed the visitors towards a score of 259-9 with both reaching their first 50s of the competition.

Moore did so from 60 balls before she was caught by Gardner off Eva Gray - who took 5-52 - for 66 and MacDonald-Gay followed two overs later for 57.

Essex's chances suffered a major setback when skipper Grace Scrivens was run out by Emma Jones' direct hit for 15 but Ariana Dowse (44) and Sophia Smale (42) made good contributions to keep them in the game.

It was Gardner, though, who provided the batting highlight, hitting six sixes and two fours - despite Dani Gregory claiming 4-57.

But she ran out of partners as MacDonald-Gay produced a crucial three-wicket burst, including those of Kate Coppack and Abtaha Maqsood at the start of the 47th over to end the match.

"Jo was batting really nicely and it was quite hard to know where to bowl to her. We just looked to try and get other people out," MacDonald-Gay said.

"The group's in a really good space – everyone knows their roles and backs each other, so now it's time to go and get the results."