Durham v Scotland (Friends Provident Trophy)

DURHAM need to follow yesterday's 38-run win against Scotland with a resounding victory at home to Derbyshire today in their final group game in the Friends Provident Trophy.

The abandonment of Derbyshire's match against Yorkshire did Durham no favours as it left both their rivals the opportunity to finish above them.

A positive result would have been better for Durham, who drew level with Derbyshire on points at the top of the group but still have an inferior run rate.

And both Derbyshire and Yorkshire, who are a point behind, have a game in hand, which will be played on Wednesday.

Yorkshire will finish top if they win their home games against Scotland and Lancashire, while Derbyshire end their programme in Scotland.

The first thing Durham need to do today is win the toss after losing it in all seven matches so far, which meant they were again put in yesterday.

As against Lancashire last week, a productive first over seemed to inflate expectations, only for Michael Di Venuto to sky an attempted pull in the third over.

Will Smith, preferred to Kyle Coetzer despite not being in the squad named on Friday, perished in the same manner.

From that point, 29 for two in the tenth over, securing victory was of much greater concern than lifting the run-rate, although there were key moments when the possibility of a big total was scuppered by wickets falling.

The first was when Phil Mustard was run out for 57 in the 28th over and the second when Dale Benkenstein was bowled for 31 after putting on 70 in 12 overs with Neil McKenzie.

They had just started to motor, and the manner of the captain's dismissal, going down the pitch to left-arm spinner Glenn Rogers with ten overs left, suggested he had the run-rate in mind.

But Ben Harmison, later to star with the ball, was sent in next and the 56 Durham gathered off the last ten overs was around 20 short of what they would have hoped for.

The total of 230 for six was always likely to be too many for Scotland, who replied with 192 all out with 3.2 overs unused. But Durham again gave the impression of firing well below last season's peak.

Mustard was initially unrecognisable from the man who was the country's top run-scorer in this competition last season.

He is not the first Durham player to have come back from a stint with England with his form apparently ruined, but he battled through and was beginning to look like his old self when he was out.

Mustard was on 20 after 17 overs when the introduction of medium pacer Richie Berrington removed the shackles with 18 coming off the over.

Mustard hit the medium pacer's third ball wide of long-on for six and five overs later he had sped to 50, reaching the target by following a reverse sweep for four off Rogers with a similar stroke off a full toss.

The complications which appear to have been introduced into what needs to be a clear head have also brought uncertainty over quick singles.

There were several jittery moments and Smith would have been run out on five but for a fumble. And when Mustard was run out he failed to get back after setting out from the non-striker's end when McKenzie pushed to cover.

Needing to anchor the innings, McKenzie had only two fours in his 82-ball half-century, but he quickly hit three more to reach 68 before he tried to run John Blain to third man and edged to the wicketkeeper.

His exit in the 44th over ended hopes of reaching 250, although Garry Park again did well in reaching 18 not out.

Scotland sent in Gavin Hamilton to open, a role Durham handed him without success at the end of his first-class career.

On two he was dropped at first slip by Gareth Breese off Mitch Claydon, who was given a chance ahead of Mark Davies in the absence of Graham Onions and Neil Killeen.

Hamilton lashed a couple of fours before edging a drive off Callum Thorp to Mustard and in the next over Di Venuto held a sensational one-handed catch high to his left at second slip off Claydon to get rid of left-hander Ed Cowan.

A double change after 12 overs brought on the Harmison brothers, and while Steve was out of luck with slices and edges just evading fielders, Ben's first five overs effectively ended any threat of a Scotland win.

Bowling very straight, it was his 28th ball before he conceded a run, and by that stage he had had Colin Smith caught at slip by Di Venuto and the dangerous Ryan Watson held at deep square leg.

Harmison senior weighed in with a deserved wicket but briefly retired from the field when Durham ought to have been going for the jugular at 51 for five.

It was 127 for five when he returned and with his second ball forced Berrington to play on after contributing 29 to the stand of 76 with Neil McCallum.

Ben also returned to pick up a third wicket when his first ball of a new spell was tamely pulled to mid-wicket by Blain, but he also came in for punishment in his final three overs, finishing with three for 43.

Durham will now pray that Scotland can do them a favour by beating Yorkshire or Derbyshire, but the first essential is to win today, when there is a possibility that Killeen will return.

SCORECARD
Durham v Scotland
At Riverside.

Durham Innings
M J Di Venuto c & b Blain 9
P Mustard run out 57
W R Smith c Watson b Nel 9
N D McKenzie c C J O Smith b Blain 68
D M Benkenstein b Rogers 31
B W Harmison c Blain b MacLeod 20
G T Park not out 18
G R Breese not out 4
Extras (b1 lb3 w4 nb6 pens 0) 14
Total 6 wkts Innings Complete
(50 overs) 230
Fall: 1-10 2-29 3-104 4-174 5-191 6-219
Did Not Bat: C D Thorp, S J Harmison, M E Claydon.
Bowling: Blain 10-0-34-2. Nel 9-3-26-1.
MacLeod 9-1-44-1. Berrington 4-0-34-0. Rogers
10-0-44-1. Watson 8-0-44-0.

Scotland Innings
G M Hamilton c Mustard b Thorp 13
R R Watson c W R Smith b B W Harmison 26
E J Cowan c Di Venuto b Claydon 0
C J Smith c Di Venuto b B W Harmison 11
D F Watts c Mustard b S J Harmison 0
N F McCallum b S J Harmison 60
R D Berrington b S J Harmison 29
J A Blain c Di Venuto b B W Harmison 8
C S MacLeod run out 7
G A Rogers not out 19
J D Nel c Benkenstein b Thorp 14
Extras (lb3 w2 pens 0) 5
Total (46.4 overs) 192
Fall: 1-22 2-23 3-46 4-51 5-51 6-127 7-139
8-153 9-160
Bowling: Thorp 8.4-0-44-2. Claydon 9-1-19-1. B
W Harmison 10-4-43-3. S J Harmison 10-1-39-
3. Benkenstein 4-0-14-0. Breese 5-0-30-0.

Durham beat Scotland by 38 runs