Liam Patterson-White believes a fearless mentality served Notts Outlaws well as they secured a two-wicket win over Durham in a low-scoring thriller at Grantham.

Patterson-White, on his return from England Lions duty, recorded figures of 5/45 as Durham were dismissed for 226, but was left with a watching brief as Brett Hutton and Zak Chappell ultimately overhauled the visitors’ total.

“I was a bit nervous in the dressing room, and it did get a bit nip and tuck towards the end, but I back all the lads in our side completely,” he said.

“We all look to play to our strengths, and everyone has the full support of the dressing room in that, so it was great to see so many of the lads contribute today.

“This is a home away from home for us, so it was nice to put in a performance like that.”

It was an Outlaws run-chase of contrasting styles, with Matthew Montgomery hitting 54 from 84 deliveries and Lyndon James 35 from 53, in between more attacking cameos from Sol Budinger (35 from 25) and Fateh Singh (25 from 26).

18-year-old Singh’s innings included two sixes which helped to wrestle the contest back in the hosts’ favour, and Patterson-White savoured his fellow Academy graduate’s contribution.

“Fateh’s a very good player who likes to hit the ball hard – and while he might not have got us over the line, he certainly helped us along the way,” he said.

“It’s one thing to know you’ve got those shots in your locker, but it’s quite another to go out there and perform – and I’m not sure I’d have been able to be that fearless at his age!

“Matt held the innings together really well too – it was a vintage innings from him, and it’s nice to see him in this kind of form.”

Patterson-White’s season to date has seen him become Division Two of the County Championship’s most prolific wicket-taker, before being elevated to England Lions honours in the national side’s recent innings victory over the South Africans.

It has been a summer which has armed the 23-year-old with insight on how to take his career forward.

“The Lions call-up caught me by surprise, to be honest!” he revealed.

“It’s great to know you might be in the mix for higher honours though, and it was a real eye-opener in terms of what’s required to get to the next level.

“In many ways the prep work done by the Lions was similar to the approach we take at Notts, but you have the chance to take even more personal responsibility with your work.

“There were some really good players in that South Africa side, so to test my skills against theirs brought its challenges! But to get the odd wicket here and there was really satisfying.”

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