Rain ruins Headingley date

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Yorkshire Carnegie’s Twenty20 Cup match against Leicestershire Foxes was abandoned without a ball being bowled at Headingley.

Heavy rain from mid-afternoon onwards never relented and umpires Barrie Leadbeater and Rob Bailey called the game off at 6.45pm when it was apparent that the ground could not be ready in time even if the rain stopped.

The point which Yorkshire took from the ‘no result’ match lifted them to 10 points – one ahead of Nottinghamshire Outlaws who they meet tomorrow at Trent Bridge on the final day of the group stages of the competition.

If Yorkshire win that encounter and second-placed Lancashire lose to leaders, Durham Dynamos, then Yorkshire will qualify for the quarter-finals in second place because they have twice beaten Lancashire.

And if Yorkshire’s game is either abandoned or finishes in a tie they may still qualify in third place.

Leadbeater, the former Yorkshire batsman, was forced to pay a watery farewell to Headingley Carnegie.

He reaches retirement age later this summer and is not scheduled to officiate in any further matches on the ground this season.

Even though Yorkshire had not finalised their side for today’s match, England captain, Michael Vaughan, was due to play, but the England management have not made him available for the Notts game.

He was also forced to sit out the match with Durham at Riverside on Tuesday.