Yeh unki chauthi seedhi haar thi, jo unke liye ek bura daur dikha raha hai. Birmingham Bears ne pehle batting karte hue 199 for 6 ka score banaya, jisme Tom Latham (58 off 42) aur Alex Davies (49 off 29) ne shandaar shuruaat di. Lekin Derbyshire ke bowlers, khaas kar Pat Brown (3 for 40), ne kuch had tak unhe rokne ki koshish ki. Par yeh kaafi nahi tha, kyunki Hasan Ali ke shandaar 6 for 23, jisme ek hat-trick bhi shamil thi, ne Derbyshire ki ummeedon ko poori tarah se chhur chhur kar diya.
Lekin is match mein kuch aisa bhi tha jo dil ko chhoo gaya. Hasan Ali ki bowling ek masterclass thi, jo yaad dilati hai 2005 ke T20 quarter-final mein jab Derbyshire ke khilaaf Lancashire ke Mal Loye ne 73 off 32 balls ki shandaar innings kheli thi, lekin us din bhi Derbyshire haar gaya tha. Hasan ne apni tezi aur accuracy se Falcons ke batsmen ko pareshan kiya, aur unka hat-trick – Ross Whiteley, Alex Thomson, aur Ben Aitchison ko teeno consecutive balls par out karna – Warwickshire ke liye ek yaadgaar pal tha. Yeh hat-trick Warwickshire ka T20 mein paanchva hat-trick tha aur Derbyshire ke khilaaf pehla, jo Paul Collingwood ke 5 for 14 ke record ko bhi peechhe chhod gaya. George Garton ne bhi apna yogdaan diya, ek return catch aur chaar shandaar catches ke saath, jo T20 mein non-wicketkeeper ke liye world record ke barabar hai.
Derbyshire ke liye Ross Whiteley (50 off 37) aur Wayne Madsen (46 off 32) ne thodi ladai dikhayi, lekin yeh kaafi nahi tha. Dono ne teen-teen sixes lagaye, lekin jaise hi woh bada shot khelne gaye, deep mein catch out ho gaye. Yeh yaad dilata hai 1996 ke us County Championship match ka jab Derbyshire ne Lancashire ko Old Trafford par 2 wickets se haraya tha, aur Jason Gallian ke 312 runs bhi unhe nahi bacha paye the. Us samay Derbyshire championship ke liye lad raha tha, lekin aaj unka yeh haal hai ki woh apni form ke liye joojh rahe hain.
Warwickshire ke liye yeh jeet unke do consecutive home wins ka hissa hai, jo unhe tournament mein ek majboot position mein la raha hai. Tom Latham aur Alex Davies ki opening partnership ne ek solid foundation diya, jo yaad dilata hai 1981 ke us match ka jab John Wright aur Peter Kirsten ne Lancashire ke khilaaf 321 runs ki partnership banayi thi, jo aaj bhi Derbyshire ka record hai. Hasan Ali ki performance bhi yaad dilati hai Pakistani pacer Wasim Akram ki, jo Lancashire ke liye khelte hue apne samay mein opposition ko tabah kar dete the.
Lekin Derbyshire ke fans ke liye yeh ek aur dukhbhara din tha. Unki team abhi bhi apne aap ko sambhal nahi pa rahi hai. Injuries aur kharab form ne unhe peechhe dhakel diya hai, aur yeh haar unke campaign ke liye ek aur jhatka hai. Jab tak woh apni batting aur strategy ko sudhar nahi lete, aage ka raasta mushkil dikhta hai.
