James Vince pays tribute to nerveless Nathan Ellis

The Australian executed a perfect slower delivery to beat Richard Gleeson and clinch the title at the second attempt as Lancashire's attempt to run two byes was thwarted by the umpires

James Vince hailed the composure of Nathan Ellis after the Australian managed to retain his composure amid the extraordinary ending to the T20 Blast final.

Four Hampshire bowlers took more wickets than the 27-year-old, capped six times at international level, but none had a better economy rate through the tournament.

That nuance played out in the final at Edgbaston, with Ellis going wicketless but conceding just 23 runs in his four overs, including just six off the bat in one of the most dramatic final overs in the tournament's history.

Lancashire needed four runs off the last ball to tie the game and win the title on wickets lost when Ellis bowled Richard Gleeson. But after 30 seconds of celebrations, including fireworks, music blaring, stumps being ripped from the ground and stewards entering the pitch, umpire Graham Lloyd called a no-ball.

After an impromptu huddle between Hampshire's fielders, which Ellis described as Vince "making sure we were all aware of the situation to calm down and get our heads back", the Australian executed a perfect slower delivery to beat Gleeson again and clinch the title at the second attempt, even if there was more drama to come as Lancashire's attempt to run two byes was thwarted by the umpires.

"The way Nathan regrouped and the confidence to go to the slower ball in that situation, he's executed so well at the death," said Vince. "All the other guys were there sort of spectating on the off-chance the ball would come to them, but to regroup and have the ball in hand was outstanding."

^{Vince marked his ninth Finals Day appearance with his third title (Alex Davidson/Getty Images)}

The pair had faced one another in the Big Bash previously, with Ellis a star performer for Hobart Hurricanes and Vince a regular overseas player for Sydney Sixers.

Vince added that signing a bowler likely to be available for the duration of the competition – even with the risk of Australia A touring Sri Lanka in June – had made "a big difference".

"I know how good he is," he said. "Also, I know he's played a bit for Australia and I'm sure he'll play a lot more. We've got a good relationship with George Bailey, the Australian selector, from when he played at Hampshire."

Hampshire's victory – their third Blast title but a first in a decade – was made all the more remarkable for their start to the campaign, which began with four consecutive defeats. They subsequently won 12 of their next 13 games to clinch the trophy, an improbable level of consistency in such a volatile format.

Even in the final, they had appeared down and out, once Lancashire made a strong start to their chase of a middling total on a hybrid pitch that didn't deteriorate or spin as on previous Finals Days, a product perhaps of its move into July from September. But wickets at key times prevented any of Lancashire's top five from turning promising starts into the kind of match-defining contribution that had earlier been played by Ben McDermott, who made the only half-century in the game.

"The resilience and the belief within the group probably comes through winning," Vince said. "You have to experience those situations a couple of times to build the belief, not just in T20 but in four-day cricket as well.

^{Ellis claimed 15 wickets at an economy rate of 6.87 (Warren Little/Getty Images)}

"We've shown the same belief, and now we've been able to lean on a few occasions where we have defended low totals or come back from games we've been behind in, that belief grows and grows. Tonight is another example, where going forward we know we're never out of the game.

"When you think you've won, it's special. You can't really describe the feeling of the whole effort over the last couple of months to get to that point. To turn around and realise what was going on after a good 30 seconds of celebrating, we just had to take our time and make sure everyone was aware of the situation.

"We said before the game that last year in the semi-final (when Hampshire were beaten by Somerset) we maybe sped up a bit under pressure, so today in the pressure moments to make sure we took our time and gave it some proper thought."

Ellis credited Vince with ensuring his side's calmness ahead of what was effectively a second match point for both teams. As well as affecting the crucial runout of Luke Wells off the final ball of the 19th over – pinning the stumps with one to aim at from extra cover – he also ended the competition as its highest run-scorer and was fittingly named as player of the year during the post-match presentation.

"He's definitely one of the calmer captains I've played under," said Ellis, "and then on top of that he's had an amazing tournament and has led from the front with his actions and performances.

"It's all you can ask for. It's quite a big role, especially with the amount of cricket over here in all formats. He's been phenomenal."

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