Match times, streaming information, tickets and travel, team news, head-to-head record, weather forecast, prediction, and everything else you need to know ahead of the Vitality T20 Blast match
Fixture: Yorkshire Vikings v Birmingham Bears
Venue: Emerald Headingley, Leeds
Dates: Thursday, June 10, 2021
Start time: 5.30pm
What's the lowdown?
Yorkshire welcome Birmingham to Headingley as both sides kick off their T20 Blast campaigns.
Yorkshire finished fifth in the North group last year, four points adrift of automatic qualification. Birmingham finished third in the Central group, but narrowly missed out on qualification on net run rate.
Yorkshire have not qualified for the knockout stages of the Blast since 2016 and have never won the competition. Despite having great history in the red-ball competition (33 County Championship wins), they have never been able to replicate that in the games shortest format. In order to remedy the T20 woes, they will need to get off to a perfect start against 2014 champions Birmingham Bears.
Who's in form?
Sam Hain has been Birmingham's in-form white-ball player for some time now. Last year was his best return with 284 runs, striking at 139.21 and with a phenomenal average of 56.80. He is close to passing Ian Bell as the county's all-time T20 run scorer and will take a massive step towards that accolade if he gets off to a good start in this game.
Yorkshire have been buoyed this season by the marvellous form of Adam Lyth, who was incidentally their leading run-scorer in last year's Blast. He struck 308 runs and sits atop of Yorkshire's all-time T20 runscoring charts. His form is integral to the county’s success in their 2021 campaign.
Experienced international and T20 skipper David Willey had a quiet year by his standards last time round, and will need to correct that with bat and ball during this edition.
Last five T20 matches (most recent first)
Yorkshire: WLLLL
Birmingham: LWLWW
Head-to-head T20 record
Total matches: 14
Yorkshire wins: 5
Birmingham wins: 6
Tied: 1
No result: 2
Abandoned: 4
What's the team news?
Yorkshire: Jonny Bairstow and Adil Rashid return to the Yorkshire squad. Dom Bess and Joe Root are unavailable due to England commitments.
Yorkshire squad: Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Lockie Ferguson, Will Fraine, George Hill, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Adam Lyth, Dawid Malan, Duanne Olivier, Adil Rashid, Jack Shutt, Jordan Thompson, Matthew Waite, David Willey
Birmingham: Danny Briggs and Carlos Brathwaite look set for their Birmingham Bears debuts.
Birmingham squad: Will Rhodes, Carlos Brathwaite, Tim Bresnan, Danny Briggs, Ethan Brookes, Michael Burgess, Sam Hain, Olly Hannon-Dalby, Adam Hose, Jake Lintott, Craig Miles, Dan Mousley, Ed Pollock
Latest Yorkshire news: Click here
Latest Birmingham news: Click here
What's the weather forecast?
It’s a bright and sunny evening in Headingley, with a high of 21 degrees Celsius throughout the day. Without a cloud in sight, the weather is unlikely to get in the way of a great contest.
Keep up to date with the MetOffice's rolling forecast for Headingley: Click here
How do I follow the match?
TV/stream: The ECB are offering a streaming service which can be found here.
Radio: BBC Local Radio and the BBC Sport website will carry ball-by-ball radio commentary of the game.
Digital: The Cricketer will carry live scorecards and daily updates from every Vitality T20 Blast match in 2021, as well as the latest breaking news from around the counties and exclusive features. Visit our County Hub for more.
Going to the game?
Tickets
Yorkshire versus Birmingham Bears will be played in front of a reduced crowd in line with the government's msot recent Covid-19 guidelines.
Click here to visit the Yorkshire box office.
Travel
Address: Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Emerald Headingley Stadium, Leeds, LS6 3DP
By car: From the south leave the M1 at Junction 43 to take the M621 as far as Junction 2. From the M62 West leave at Junction 27 to take the M621 as far as Junction 2. From the M62 East leave at Junction29 to join the M1 Northbound to take the M621 as far as junction 2.
At Junction 2 of the M621 follow the signs for Headingley stadium along the A643. These signs will lead you along the Leeds Inner Ring Road A58 to the A660 which is signposted to Skipton and Headingley Stadium. Signs along this road will indicate you have reached the Headingley area.
All routes into Leeds from Bradford, Keighley and other northern areas lead to the Leeds Outer Ring Road, the A6110 – A6120 – A63. Along the Outer Ring Road signposting to Headingley Stadium will lead you to the A660 Otley Road and from here southwards to the Headingley area.
Parkings: Check latest information with the club, given Covid-19 restrictions.
By train: Headingley is served by three stations.
Leeds Station: Headingley is around a 10-15 minute drive from Leeds City Station. A taxi should cost around £8-£10.
Headingley Station: Headingley Station is on the Harrogate Line and is a 10-minute walk from the ground. Please note that the initial part of this walk is slightly uphill. Trains run half-hourly from Leeds Station and should take around 12 minutes.
Burley Park Station: Burley Park Station is also on the Harrogate Line and is a five minute walk from the ground. Trains run half hourly and should take around five minutes. If travelling from Leeds Station this is your recommended station to use.
By bus: The following services operate from the city centre towards Headingley.
Services 19 and 19A – buses every 15 minutes
City Centre stops:
Stand F7 on York Street opposite Leeds Bus Station
Stand K13 on Kirkgate
Stand K17 on Duncan Street
Stand S10 outside Leeds Railway Station
Stand D on Infirmary Street
Stand Y10 opposite the Central Library
Stand Y14 opposite the Combined Courts
Service 56 – buses every 10 minutes
City Centre stops
Stand G6 on Eastgate
Stand J1 on Albion Street
Services 19/A
Full route: Ireland Wood/Tinshill-Spen Lane-Queenswood Drive-Headingley (Stadium)-Cardigan Road-Burley Road-City Centre-York Road-Halton-Whitkirk-Colton-Garforth.
Service 56
Full route: Moor Grange-Queenswood Drive-Headingley (Stadium)-Hyde Park-University-City Centre-York Road-Cross Gates-Swarcliffe-Whinmoor
Headingley ground guide: Click here
Prediction?
Both teams have been tumultuous in recent times, struggling to find consistency throughout their recent campaigns. It’s a tough call, but at home Yorkshire should just have the edge. Home win.
OTHER T20 BLAST FIXTURES: THURSDAY, JUNE 10
North Group
Lancashire Lightning v Leicestershire Foxes
South Group
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