Bears earn fourth successive win as Leicestershire's misery continues

Sam Hain overtook Ian Bell as Warwickshire's leading T20 run-scorer while captain Will Rhodes was top-scorer on the day for the Bears with 79 from 40 balls

Grace Road: Birmingham Bears 190-7, Leicestershire Foxes 155 - Birmingham won by 35 runs

Scorecard

Skipper Will Rhodes posted a career-best 79 as North Group leaders Birmingham Bears notched a fourth consecutive win and consigned Leicestershire to a fifth straight defeat in the Vitality Blast.

Sam Hain overtook Ian Bell as Bears' all-time top scorer in the format in making 45 as Bears racked up 190 for 7, while Ben Mike took a career-best 4 for 22 for the Foxes.

Leicestershire's Scott Steel and Rishi Patel made 46 and 30, respectively, but after losing three key batters in the powerplay the Foxes were always off the pace and fell 35 runs short, Tim Bresnan taking 3 for 29 and Danny Briggs 3 for 35.

Asked to bat first, the Bears lost both openers to Naveen’s slower balls, Ed Pollock miscuing his to short fine leg and Pieter Malan spooning one to mid-on, which left Bears 42 for 2 from the powerplay.

But Rhodes, dropped off Colin Ackermann on 27 when Naveen misjudged a chance at long-on, hit clearly to clear the ropes five times as he and Hain added 113 from 62 balls before Rhodes mistimed one to caught at square leg.

Hain looked set for a fourth half-century in five innings but going after Ben Mike he holed out to long on, where Lewis Hill took a fine catch above his head, with Carlos Brathwaite caught at wide-long-off in the same over.

Mike claimed two more in the final over, tracking a skier from Michael Burgess out to midwicket for a return catch, before Dan Mousley hit the next ball straight to deep point, although Bresnan pulled the hat-trick ball for six and overthrows made for an untidy end.

Josh Inglis hit two of his first three balls to the boundary as Briggs opened the bowling for the Bears but was bowled trying to cut, setting the tone for a costly powerplay for the Foxes, who also lost Lilley to a stumping off Briggs, and Ackermann to a slower ball from Bresnan that he hit straight to mid-on to leave them 48 for 3.

Rishi Patel raised home hopes with 30 from 25 balls and as he and Steel added 51 off 39 the Foxes needed 92 from eight overs. But after Patel’s flick off his legs found the fielder at square leg, Steel was beaten by Briggs and stumped, with Louis Kimber run out in the same over.

Hill was left unbeaten on 26 but wickets fell quickly at the other end, Bresnan dismissing Ben Mike and claiming his third wicket off the last ball as Ed Barnes holed out to deep midwicket.