Men’s Vitality Blast 2026 North Group – Durham vs Leicestershire; Yorkshire vs Derbyshire

Check out all the Preview Stats and AI Predictive Form Guide for the Men’s Vitality Blast 2026 North Group Matches – Durham vs Leicestershire Foxes and Yorkshire Vikings vs Derbyshire Falcons – to be played on 24th May

Points Table

Durham vs Leicestershire Foxes

To be played on 24th May, 2026 at Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street.

Match Details:

Date: Sunday, 24th May 2026.

Venue: Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street.

Start Time: 2:30 PM GMT | 8:00 PM IST | 3:30 PM Local.

Current Form:

Durham:

A tight start to their season, but Durham will be glad having ended on the right side against the Derbyshire Falcons, having won by six runs to open their tournament.

Alex Lees and Ollie Robinson were key with the bat while Colin Ackermann also chipped in, their bowling was led by Callum Parkinson and Ben Raine.

Leicestershire Foxes:

The Leicestershire Foxes battled hard but fell short in their chase against the Worcestershire Rapids, and will want to remedy that quickly with a win.

Nick Kelly, Ashton Turner and Ben Cox did well for the Foxes with the bat, but it wasn’t enough while their bowling was led by Ben Green and Josh Davey.

Players to Watch:

Durham:

Callum Parkinson – the left arm orthodox spinner was key for the Durham side, having gotten rid of the Derbyshire skipper and destroying their middle order in a tight win.

Alex Lees – opening the batting, the captain led from the front for Durham having scored a 28-ball 54 where he struck at 192.85 and ensured Durham were off to a rapid start.

Ollie Robinson – the wicketkeeper batter had the tough task of stabilising the innings while ensuring momentum was not lost, and he did well, scoring a 24-ball 48 only dismissed in the penultimate over.

Leicestershire Foxes:

Nick Kelly – it was a good start for the newly signed overseas batter for the Foxes, with Nick Kelly scoring an unbeaten 61 off 42 on his white-ball debut for the side.

Ben Green – continuing his exceptional career in the Vitality Blast, Ben Green was the pick of the bowlers for the Foxes, having picked up 2/25 off his four overs.

Ben Cox – the wicket-keeper batter was impressive, and combined with Nick Kelly to almost pull it off, as Ben Cox scored an unbeaten 51 off 32 balls.

Head-to-Head (Last 5 Matches):

The Foxes have been able to get the better of their Northern County in Durham over their last five games, with the Foxes winning three out of the five as their most recent fixture was washed out.

Batting Stats T20

Venue Stats – Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street (2023-2026):

Average 1st Innings Score:

2023 – 158.9

2024 – 152.7

2025 – 192.0

Bowling Averages and Economy Rates:

Wickets Percentage based on Innings:

Wickets Per Innings:

Wickets per Phase:

Powerplay (Overs 1–6): 1.53 wickets

Middle Overs (Overs 7–15): 2.64 wickets

Death Overs (Overs 16–20): 2.48 wickets

After a few years where the bowlers made hay, the Riverside Ground turned into a safe haven for batters, with the average first innings score having risen up to 192 in 2025. There is a slight advantage in batting first with 52.4% of the games won by sides who do so.

It has been the pace bowlers who have bowled well at the Riverside Ground, averaging 24.05 runs per dismissal as they strike once every 16.3 balls while the spin bowlers have averaged 30.38 and needed 22.4 balls per wicket.

Squads:

Durham:

Alex Lees ©, Ollie Robinson (WK), Ben McKinney, Emilio Gay, Graham Clark, David Bedingham, Sam Conners, Nathan Sowter, David Hogg, Archie Bailey, Callum Parkinson, Mark Wood, Matthew Potts, Will Rhodes, Kasey Aldridge, Shafiqullah Ghafari, Ben Raine, George Drissell, Colin Ackermann, Ben Stokes and Brydon Carse.

Leicestershire Foxes:

Stephen Eskinazi © (WK), Ben Cox (WK), Sol Budinger, Jonathan Tattersall, Jake Weatherald, Josh Davey, Josh Hull, Liam Trevaskis, Sam Wood, Alex Green, Ajaz Patel, Ben Mike, Rishi Patel, Rehan Ahmed, Tom Scriven, Ian Holland, Ben Green and Ashton Turner.

Match Prediction – Durham v Leicestershire

Cricket Match Predictions – PrePlay

Who will win the toss? — Durham

Who will win the match? — Durham

Top Batter (Runs Scored) — Alex Lees (Durham), Ashton Turner (Leicestershire Foxes)

Top Bowler (Wickets Taken) — Ben Raine (Durham), Ben Green (Leicestershire Foxes)

Most Sixes — Alex Lees (Durham), Ashton Turner (Leicestershire Foxes)

Player of the Match — Alex Lees (Durham)

Team Scores Batting First — Durham 190+, Leicestershire Foxes 180+

Yorkshire vs Derbyshire Falcons

To be played on the 24th of May, 2026 at Headingley, Leeds.

Match Details:

Date: Sunday, 24th May 2026.

Venue: Headingley, Leeds.

Start Time: 02:30 PM GMT | 08:00 PM IST | 03:30 PM Local.

Current Form:

Yorkshire:

Yorkshire head into the new season with one of the strongest batting line-ups in the competition, with the likes of Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali all available in what looks like a dangerous squad on paper. Their explosive top order and experienced spin attack should make them one of the toughest sides to beat at Headingley. They got off to a flier in their first game, comfortably chasing 169 against the Notts, thanks to a Bairstow masterclass.

The bowling attack also has plenty of experience with Adil Rashid, Hasan Ali, Naveen-ul-Haq and Logan van Beek expected to play major roles throughout the competition, while youngsters like Jafer Chohan and George Hill add further depth.

Derbyshire Falcons:

Derbyshire will once again rely on their experienced core of Wayne Madsen, Ross Whiteley and Matt Montgomery as they aim to put together a stronger Blast campaign this season. The Falcons showed flashes of brilliance last year, particularly with the bat, but struggled for consistency across both innings. They lost a thriller to Durham, with Montogomery putting up a fighting knock in the middle order.

Their bowling unit will depend heavily on Ben Aitchison along with Akif Javed and Jack Morley, while Caleb Jewell and Aneurin Donald will be expected to provide quick starts at the top of the order.

Wicket Takers T20

Players to Watch: (Stats from the 2025 Blast)

Yorkshire:

Jonny Bairstow enjoyed another destructive T20 campaign, having scored 177 runs in just seven innings at an average of 25.3 while striking at 165.4, including a superb hundred with a highest score of 116. His aggressive intent at the top of the order makes him one of the most dangerous batters in the competition.

Logan van Beek was excellent with the ball, having picked up 22 wickets in thirteen innings at an average of 20.2 while striking once every 13.5 balls. Despite bowling in difficult phases of the innings, he maintained a healthy economy rate of 8.97 and continues to be a proven wicket-taking option.

Moeen Ali adds tremendous balance to the Yorkshire side with both bat and ball. He scored 123 runs at a strike rate of 135.2 while also picking up seven wickets at an average of 23.6, giving Yorkshire a reliable all-round option through the middle overs.

Derbyshire Falcons:

Aneurin Donald was Derbyshire’s most aggressive batter in the previous campaign, scoring 449 runs at a strike rate of 216.9 while smashing 31 sixes. His ability to dominate the powerplay overs gives Derbyshire rapid starts and puts bowlers under immediate pressure.

Caleb Jewell enjoyed a productive season with the bat, having scored 359 runs at an average of 27.6 while striking at 138.6. He also registered two fifties and formed an important partnership option at the top of the order.

Wayne Madsen continued to be the backbone of Derbyshire’s batting unit, scoring 431 runs in fourteen innings at an average of 39.2 while striking at 136.8. His consistency and ability to anchor the innings remain vital for Derbyshire.

Head-to-Head (Last 5 Matches):

This head-to-head battle has been dominated by the Derbyshire Falcons, and Yorkshire  will hope to turn it around.

Venue Stats – Headingley, Leeds (2023-2026):

Average 1st Innings Score:

2023 – 178.63

2024 – 159.81

2025 – 188.0

Bowling Averages and Economy Rates:

Wickets Percentage based on Innings:

Wickets Per Innings:

Wickets per Phase:

Powerplay (Overs 1–6): 1.85 wickets

Middle Overs (Overs 7–15): 2.73 wickets

Death Overs (Overs 16–20): 2.48 wickets

Headingley has generally been a good batting venue in recent seasons, with the average first innings score rising steadily over the last three years and crossing the 180-mark in 2025. Teams batting first have enjoyed slightly better success here, winning 60+ % of the games.

The quicker bowlers have enjoyed slightly more success at this venue, averaging 26.8 runs per dismissal and striking once every 17 balls, while the spinners have been more economical but less effective in terms of wicket-taking.

Most 6’s T20

Squads:

Derbyshire Falcons:

Wayne Madsen ©, Aneurin Donald (WK), Brooke Guest (WK), Harry Came, Mitchell Wagstaff, Caleb Jewell, Matthew Montgomery, Luis Reeec, Ross Whiteley, Anuj Dal, Martin Andersson, Yusaf bin Naeem, Harry Moore, Amrit Basra, Zak Chappell, Shoaib Bashir, Ben Aitchison, Jack Morley, Nick Potts, Pat Brown, Rory Haydon, Sufiyan Muqeem and Joe Hawkins.

Yorkshire:

Shan Masood, Adam Lyth, Fin Bean, Harry Brook, Harry Duke, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow ©, Matthew Revis, Yusaf Vagedia, Will Luxton, Nick Kelly, Adil Rashid, Ash Wade, Ben Coad, Dom Moriarty, Dom Bess, Jordan White, Jafer Chohan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Hasan Ali, Logan Van Beek, Jake Richardson, Callum Taylor, Ben Cliff, George Hill, James Wharton, Jawaid Akhtar, Will Bennison and Moeen Ali.

Match Prediction – Yorkshire v Derbyshire

Cricket Match Predictions – PrePlay

Who will win the toss? — Derbyshire

Who will win the match? — Yorkshire

Top Batter (Runs Scored) — Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Aneurin Donald (Derbyshire)

Top Bowler (Wickets Taken) — Logan van Beek (Yorkshire), Akif Javed (Derbyshire)

Most Sixes — Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Aneurin Donald (Derbyshire)

Player of the Match — Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire)

Team Scores Batting First — Yorkshire 180+, Derbyshire 165+