Scotland international George Munsey powered an unbeaten 88 as Notts Outlaws registered a first win of their Vitality Blast campaign, comfortably beating Durham by six wickets with 16 balls to spare at Trent Bridge.
Notts were miserly with the ball in restricting Durham to 156 for eight and opener Munsey’s first big contribution in the competition meant they were always comfortably ahead in the chase.
The 33-year-old left-hander, capped 165 times for his country, hit three sixes and nine fours in a 52-ball knock, backed up by Freddie McCann’s 32 from 33 balls.
Olly Stone, Mohammad Ali and George Linde took two wickets each in a Durham innings that never found any sustained momentum, Will Rhodes top scoring with 38 from 32 balls after Ollie Robinson had made 36 from 27.
Dillon Pennington set the tone with a wicket from his first delivery as Durham were left reeling at 41 for four at the end of their batting powerplay.
After Graham Clark was caught behind off a thin edge, Mohammad Ali struck with his first ball as Alex Lees miscued to mid-on. Left-arm spinner George Linde took two in two as South African compatriot David Bedingham (24 from 19), who had already cleared the ropes twice, sent up a steepling top edge and Ben Raine picked out the man at deep midwicket.
Durham were 70 for four from 10, which quickly became 71 for five as Robinson missed a ball from Benny Howell that struck him low on the back pad.
Colin Ackermann eked out 25 from 20 balls including back-to-back boundaries off Howell before being cleaned up by an Olly Stone leg-stump yorker. Rhodes and Kasey Aldridge (20 off 13) found some belated momentum as the last five overs added 54, although 156 looked well under par.
Needing to score at just less than eight an over, the Outlaws breezed through their batting powerplay at above ten, Munsey leading the way with six fours and a six. At 63 for two, they had lost Joe Clarke, leg before, and Jack Haynes, caught at fine leg.
Munsey, a powerful striker of the ball, completed his first Outlaws half-century from 30 deliveries, hitting Ben Raine over the top for his eighth four as Notts reached halfway in their innings at 93 for two, needing another 64.
Back-to-back maximums off Nathan Sowter brought the requirement down to 25 from the last five overs.
Notts suffered a monetary wobble as McCann skied one into the off side and Tom Moores edged behind without scoring, Matty Potts taking both wickets with a wide in between, but new man Linde quickly found the winning boundary.
