Lancashire close in on quarter-final berth

Lancashire eased four points clear at the top with a six-wicket defeat of Durham at Old Trafford. The visitors looked set for a good score when they reached 61 for 2, but Lancashire's trio of spinners then put a stranglehold on the innings, reducing them to 106 for 6; they finished on a below-par 123. Lancashire's chase was perfectly-paced, Tom Smith's 56-ball 57 not out providing the anchor as they eased home with five balls in hand

Andrew Gale's 91 helped Yorkshire to an eight-wicket win over Nottinghamshire at Headingley, their third in a row and a result which lfited them into second place in the division. Adam Voges, with 82 from 55 balls, including 26 off one Tim Bresnan over, was the mainstay as Nottinghamshire made 155 for 6, but Gale and Michael Vaughan (41*) added 129 for Yorkshire's second wicket as they eased home with 12 deliveries in hand.

Leicestershire revived their prospects of qualification for the quarter-finals with a timely 14-run victory over Derbyshire at Derby. Matt Boyce (33) and Jim Allenby (31) added 55 for the first wicket as Leicestershire reached 144 for 6 in their 20 overs, although Garry Park picked up 3 for 29 in four overs to prevent that total from getting out of hand. Nevertheless, it was still too stiff a total for the home side. Greg Smith did his best with 43 off 36 balls, but their challenge was always off the pace as Claude Henderson kept things tight with 2 for 21 in four overs.

Somerset closed the gap on leaders Northamptonshire with a 30-run victory over them at Wantage Road, their first loss of the campaign. Charl Willoughby did the damage when Northants batted, taking four of the first five wickets to fall to finish with 4 for 29, while another South African, Zander de Bruyn, thumped a 64-ball 83 as Somerset made 163 for 3.

Worcestershire kept up the pressure with a 29-run victory over Glamorgan at Cardiff, a result which all but ends the hosts' own chances. A good all-round batting display helped Worcestershire to 164 for 6, and while Glamorgan began well, in six balls they lost three wickets to slip to 42 for 3, and despite a fourth-wicket stand of 60 between Ben Wright and Michael Powell, they fell away at the end.

Warwickshire's quarter-final hopes were still alive after a four-wicket win over Gloucestershire at Edgbaston. Tight bowling restricted the visitors to 135 for 7, Keith Barker's 2 for 16 in four overs the most parsimonious. Warwickshire were wobbling on 59 for 4 when Ian Westwood took charge, and his 37-ball 44 steered them to victory with six balls to spare.

Michael Yardy manipulated Sussex to a tight Duckworth-Lewis victory over Kent at Hove thanks to a cunningly timed over of off-spin that hauled his side ahead of the asking-rate, before the return of the pace of Robin Martin-Jenkins forced the umpires to take the players from the field in gloomy light. The conditions did not improve with nine overs still to play, leaving Sussex victors by two runs. Yardy's 11th over of the innings went for only two runs, to deny Kent a probable win, and reinforce his team's position at the top of the South Division.

Hampshire routed Essex at 75 runs at Southampton thanks to Michael Lumb's fantastic 124 not out from 69 balls. His innings included four sixes and 14 fours, as Hampshire racked up a formidable 219 for 2, with Michael Carberry playing second fiddle with 62 from 42 balls. In reply, Matt Walker made 50 from 33 balls, but Essex were stymied by Dominic Cork with the new ball and Sean Ervine at the death. His figures of 3 for 19 in three overs delivered the victory with an over to spare.

Midlands/Wales/West Division

Teams	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	Net RR	For	Against
Northamptonshire	6	5	1	0	0	10	+0.592	963/119.0	900/120.0
Somerset	6	4	2	0	0	8	+0.445	896/114.2	887/120.0
Worcestershire	6	4	2	0	0	8	+0.417	950/120.0	880/117.2
Warwickshire	6	3	3	0	0	6	-0.089	898/116.3	933/119.4
Gloucestershire	6	1	5	0	0	2	-0.633	873/120.0	941/119.0
Glamorgan	6	1	5	0	0	2	-0.715	825/120.0	864/113.5

North Division

Teams	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	Net RR	For	Against
Lancashire	6	6	0	0	0	12	+1.066	810/110.2	753/120.0
Yorkshire	6	4	2	0	0	8	+0.066	772/114.0	769/114.4
Leicestershire	6	3	3	0	0	6	+0.392	919/120.0	838/115.2
Derbyshire	6	2	4	0	0	4	-0.447	850/119.0	845/111.2
Durham	6	2	4	0	0	4	-0.494	843/120.0	896/119.1
Nottinghamshire	6	1	5	0	0	2	-0.596	921/115.1	1014/118.0

South Division

Teams	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	Net RR	For	Against
Sussex	8	5	3	0	0	10	+0.162	1021/143.0	1006/144.1
Hampshire	6	4	2	0	0	8	+1.318	974/116.1	828/117.1
Kent	6	3	2	0	1	7	+0.700	661/86.2	633/91.0
Essex	6	3	2	0	1	7	-0.345	792/99.5	814/98.2
Surrey	5	2	3	0	0	4	+0.137	812/100.0	797/99.5
Middlesex	5	0	5	0	0	0	-2.248	603/100.0	785/94.5