Somerset 182 for 4 (Bartlett 55) Durham 181 (Lees 63, Lamb 3-25, Thomas 3-40) by
Somerset put in a complete performance with bat and ball to ease past Durham by six wickets in their Metro Bank One-Day Cup Group B match at South Northumberland in Gosforth.
Somerset won the toss and were justified in their decision as Durham failed to get away. Michael Jones endured a torrid time in the middle, struggling to time the ball on a tough surface and overcast conditions. He was dropped on 1 before he finally fell for 6 off 30 as Lamb found his inside edge and James Rew claimed a simple catch.
Lamb continued to put the Durham batters under pressure as the hosts struggled to score three runs per over in the opening third of the innings. Scott Borthwick became Lamb’s second victim when he was pinned lbw for 11, reducing the hosts to 56 for 2.
Lees and Bedingham responded with a calm approach against the seamers. After seeing off the threat, both players began to up the ante against the Somerset spinners.
Bedingham cleared the rope twice from Shoaib Bashir’s offspin, racing his way a run-a-ball 35 during their stand for the third wicket. Lees ground his way to a deserved half-century, his third of the competition, manoeuvring the hosts towards a solid platform.
But a miscommunication between Lees and Bedingham would hand Somerset the breakthrough as the South African was run out. The wicket sparked a collapse in the Durham ranks, falling from 134 for 2 to 181 all out. Lees picked out George Thomas on the fence from the next ball, while Jonathan Bushnell and Liam Trevaskis fell cheaply to the spin of Josh Thomas.
The lower order wilted amid impressive bowling from the visitors as only two players beyond Lees and Bedingham made double figures, resulting in Durham being skittled out with five overs remaining in their innings.
Somerset eased into their chase through Thomas and Umeed, reaching their fifty partnership for the opening stand within eight overs. George Drissell ended the partnership on 74 by removing Umeed for 36 and Thomas followed in the next over to Trevaskis.
But, Rew and Bartlett calmed any potential nerves in the Somerset dressing room and duly whittled down the victory total with a quickfire stand of 52. Although Rew fell to Trevaskis, Bartlett pushed on with a brutal assault of the Durham bowlers to reach his fifty from 31 balls, including back-to-back sixes against Bas de Leede.
Bartlett was out for 55 to present Trevaskis with his third wicket, but Somerset still eased over the line as Paul Coughlin bowled a no-ball to take the visitors to their victory total.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo