[Watch] Alex Hales Grabs a Stunner in Nottinghamshire’s Close Win vs Leicestershire in T20 Blast
Hales has been an integral member of the Notts setup [Source: Twitter]
Alex Hales pouched a stunning catch in Nottinghamshire's thrilling victory over Leicestershire in their final North Group fixture of the T20 Blast 2023 season. The senior Englishman, stationed at mid-on, dove to his right to complete a sensational grab and gifted his side a much-needed wicket during a critical juncture of the game.
Alex Hales’ fielding influences his side a spot in the quarter-finals
Alex Hales led Nottinghamshire in their must-win North Group home game against Leicestershire in Nottingham. The cricketer unleashed a 13-ball 26 as an opener and paved the way for the middle-order to go berserk in the death overs. However, Hales' dismissal led to a mini batting collapse before Tom Moores' 68 ultimately guided them to 168-8 from their 20 overs.
In response, Leicestershire got off to a blazing start despite losing opener Peter Handscomb for a first-ball duck. Wiaan Mulder and number three Rishi Patel unleashed a sequence of boundaries in their carefree batting zone and raced away to a 70-run standoff in just 33 deliveries.
Just when the duo threatened to run away with the game, hosts captain Alex Hales plucked a sensational catch while diving to his right after Patel had worked the ball towards the mid-on region.
Leicestershire, clearly jolted by the astonishing fielding effort by their rival skipper, squandered their perfect run-chase start to fall four runs short of the target.
Meanwhile, Nottinghamshire jumped to 16 points to leap above Yorkshire as they storm their way into the quarter-finals of the 2023 T20 Blast season. Alex Hales and co. will now face Somerset in Taunton on July 7.