Yates places the Bears platform before the spinners tie the notes into knots

Yates places the Bears platform before the spinners tie the notes into knots

The victorious Birmingham Bears made it two wins from two in the Vitality Blast, beating Notts Outlaws by 22 runs in front of 13,784 at Edgbaston.

After beating Durham in their opener the night before, the Bears elected to bat but were bowled out for 149 in 19.3 overs. Rob Yates hit a majestic 68 off 48 balls with nobody else to beat on 16 as Ollie Stone took 3 for 30 and Luke Fletcher took an excellent 4-0-20-2.

The Outlaws then piled on 54 for no loss in 35 balls before collapsing to 127 against a very experienced Bears attack led by Dan Musley, Hasan Ali, Danny Briggs and Jake Lintott.

The Outlaws, who were soundly beaten by Northants Steelbacks in their first game, need to lick more wounds ahead of next Thursday's home game against Worcestershire Rapids.

It was Yeats who made the winning contribution. He hit his first ball for a six and batted royally, although he frequently lost partners.

Alex Davies and Chris Benjamin batted short, each clearing the ropes with one and then finding the fielder with the other as Tom Moore and Calvin Harrison took smart catches. Sam Haynes shot 97.28 against the Outlaws but managed just 16 before dismissing Matt Montgomery. Musley drops Lyndon James low to cover.

Jake Bethell skied Stone in the middle. George Garton's first inning for the Bears went six innings, but he added just one more single before driving in Stone in a big way.

Amongst all the hard bits, Yeats took centre stage with a measured 37-ball 50, rising to 68 before being caught flat by a diving Jack Haynes at fine leg off Fletcher. The last three wickets - two runs and an LBW from a broken reverse whip - summed up the serious blow.

The Outlaws' bowlers earned their batting the luxury of not taking it easy, and Joe Clarke and Alex Hales took advantage of the situation to add 50 in the first five overs. Notts were all in front but Clarke's departure for 28 from 18, lifting Musley at extra cover, turned the tide of the game. Four wickets fell in 21 balls as Briggs was caught by Haynes, Will Young missed the spinner and ran out, and Hales lifted Lintot to the side.

A flash of fielding brilliance followed as Bethel took a brilliant diving catch at the outer cover boundary to chase down Moore. From 54 for no loss and comfortable, the Outlaws were 95 for 5 and much to the delight of the root-clad man in the crowd, he was under serious pressure.

Montgomery put up some resistance with 33 off 31, but when he clipped Hasan Ali, the terminal collapsed. The Outlaws back needed to find 26 off the last two overs and he didn't come close. The last word fittingly fell to Yates, who made a huge catch in extra cover to bring the crowd, including a man dressed as a carrot, to their feet.