Imam-ul-Haq sends Pakistan reminder with 159 for Yorkshire

Pakistan international Imam-ul-Haq struck a superb, classy 159, his highest List A score to set up a comprehensive Yorkshire victory over Northamptonshire by 202 runs in the Metro Bank One Day Cup at Wantage Road.

Imam, 29, averages 47.04 across a 75-match ODI career, with nine hundreds, but has been overlooked for Pakistan's three-match series against West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago, which starts on Friday night. His 159 was a reminder of his talent to their selectors.

His innings propelled Yorkshire to a mammoth 374 for 5, their highest ever team total against Northamptonshire in List A cricket - and just five short of their highest against any first-class county. It also helped inflict the highest ever home defeat on Northamptonshire by any team in List A cricket.

Facing 130 balls, Imam hit 20 fours and two sixes, passing 5,000 career List A runs and beating his previous highest score of 151 against England in 2019. It follows his half-century to steer Yorkshire to victory against Warwickshire at Scarborough on Tuesday.

While Imam cashed in against a frequently wayward Northamptonshire seam attack, his innings was full of delicate timing, perfect placement and silky cover drives before growing more aggressive. He was well supported in stands of 83 with Will Luxton (41), 158 with James Wharton (66) and 75 with a belligerent Matt Revis who smashed 69 from just 33 balls, his highest List A score. Liam Guthrie's bowling figures suffered in the run-fest but he picked up 3 for 87.

In reply, Northamptonshire were never in the chase, a tight spell from Yorkshire opening bowlers Matt Milnes and Ben Cliff setting the tone. While the hosts will count themselves unlucky to have lost two early wickets, they scored at just 4.4 an over throughout the innings. While George Bartlett (30) and Justin Broad (24) forged an enterprising partnership of 49 in eight overs, no-one else contributed anything of substance. Dan Moriarty was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 38.

Earlier, Guthrie struck quickly when Adam Lyth slashed straight to cover, but Northamptonshire's seamers strayed in line and length, allowing Yorkshire to rattle along at over six runs an over, Luxton driving consecutive wide deliveries from Guthrie for boundaries.

Imam played a beautiful straight drive and a couple of stylish backfoot punches, but Northamptonshire missed a chance to remove Luxton when Luke Procter dropped a sharp catch at point.

Bowling in tandem, spinners Rob Keogh and Yuzvendra Chahal stemmed the flow of runs but the breakthrough came via a mix-up between the batters. Imam cut square and started to run before sending Luxton back, Bartlett and Keogh affecting the runout.

Imam reached 50 off 58 balls before playing two silky cover drives off Dom Leech to take Yorkshire to 142 for 2 at the halfway stage. A pull off Leech perfectly bisected the field as he moved into the nineties before reaching 100 off 95 balls.

At the other end Wharton grew becalmed, his first boundary not arriving until the 53rd ball he faced when he hooked Guthrie for six. Shackles released, he made up for lost time, powering Guthrie down the ground, while Imam went through the gears too, slog-sweeping Chahal for six. Chahal finally broke the stand, tossing one wide, Wharton reaching for it and slicing to cover.

Imam targeted Leech, taking 15 off one over including six down the ground. Revis was severe on former Yorkshire bowler Leech too, garnering two legside boundaries off short balls and swinging Procter for six.

Imam's long innings finally ended thanks to a stunning bit of boundary fielding off Guthrie when Tim Robinson held a brilliant boundary catch, throwing it up before he crossed the rope and holding on as stepped back in.

Revis tucked into Guthrie, smashing two sixes over the infield before carving square for six more. His wicket was scant consolation for Guthrie when he holed out in the deep.

Northamptonshire's first powerplay was positively sedate, just six boundaries shared equally between Ricardo Vasconcelos (23) and Lewis McManus (25) as they reached 41 after 10 overs.

The hosts then lost two wickets in an over as McManus was adjudged caught behind off the inside edge off Ben Cliff, although the ball looked to have hit his pads. Next Aadi Sharma's List A debut ended in a runout at the non-strikers' end, Cliff deflecting the ball onto the stumps in his delivery stride.

Yorkshire picked up a third when Moriarty beat Vasconcelos, bowling him as he advanced down the pitch, attempting to force the pace. George Hill then nipped one back sharply to knock back Robinson's stumps.

With the required rate above 10, Bartlett and Broad looked to score against the spinners, Bartlett striking a straight six off Dom Bess. But the drinks break brought two wickets, Broad chipping Bess to Revis at mid-on after the resumption, before Bartlett skied Moriarty to long-on.

Rob Keogh and Luke Procter both made starts, but after Procter was bowled by Bess, Moriarty had both Leech and Guthrie caught in the deep, while Keogh (23) was bowled by Cliff.