Last night, in one of the most nerve-racking finishes of the season, Rikki Clarke and Surrey hobbled home with two balls to spare to beat the Derbyshire Scorpions by one wicket. The win moves the Lions up to second in the table. Yet, such is the scramble for promotion to Division One in the Norwich Union League, only further victories against the sides above and below them will guarantee they make the cut at the end of the season.

Clarke, who came to the wicket in the fifth over with the visitors’ reply faltering at 17 for two, made an unbeaten 98 off 121 balls. However, for the majority of his 158-minute stay, the promising 20-year-old was troubled by a bruised left knee; an injury he inflicted on himself when he tried to pull Jason Kerr just before reaching his half-century in 57 deliveries.

Having twice lifted Kevin Dean over mid-on Alistair Brown was bowled when the left-armer got one to come back into him. Six balls later Dominic Cork did the same for Ian Ward, trapping him leg before. Mark Ramprakash helped to put Surrey back on course by passing 500 runs in this year’s Norwich Union League with the first of three boundaries in four balls from Graeme Welch. But, in the very next over, the former Middlesex man threw the bat at Mohammad Ali’s loosener and was caught behind.

Only when Rikki Clarke and Nadeem Shahid added 58 runs in ten overs for the Lions’ fourth wicket could the visitors start entertaining thoughts of victory. However, the dismissal of Shahid, caught at backward point in Matt Dowman’s first over, had the result of stopping Surrey in their tracks. In the next fourteen overs they could only muster 47 as Hollioake, Batty and Bicknell came and went and Clarke battled on bravely on one leg.

The visitors’ hopes seemed to rest squarely on the shoulders of the man who was recently named the Cricket Writers’ Club’s young cricketer of the year until, with twenty runs needed off the last three overs, Ian Salisbury took the initiative by driving Dominic Cork to the extra cover boundary. After scrambling two runs off the next delivery the Surrey leg-spinner hit the last two balls of the over straight down the ground for four.

Salisbury and Murtagh both went to the bowling of Ali, leaving Ed Giddins one delivery to face. But, inexplicably, Rikki Clarke called his partner through for a leg bye. With three runs needed off the final over the Lions’ number eleven survived a convincing shout for lbw, played and missed, then scampered a single after Cork had drifted one down the leg-side. With three deliveries left, Clarke pushed the ball into the covers and hobbled the winning run.

Earlier the Scorpions’ total of 213 owed everything to a third-wicket stand of 111 in 19 overs between Dominic Cork - making his highest one-day score of the season - and 21-year-old Nathan Dumelow, who recorded a limited-overs best of 52.

After winning the toss Derbyshire were two down inside four overs when Di Venuto was caught behind off a rising delivery from Giddins and Bassano dragged the same bowler on to his off stump. Nevertheless, five overs later, the Scorpions had 58 runs on the board and when the fielding restrictions ended Cork and Dumelow had lifted their side’s total to 88 for two.

The Derbyshire skipper, who struck three boundaries in one over from Ed Giddins, was overtaken eight overs later when his partner punched the former England seamer through wide mid-off. The hundred partnership came up in just 88 deliveries and for a side who had only passed 200 once before in this summer’s competition a total well in excess appeared to be on the cards.

That it took them another 24 overs to reach the touchstone figure owed everything to a controlled nine-over spell from Ian Salisbury, in which the leg-spinner failed to concede a boundary, and four wickets in as many overs from Adam Hollioake.

Starting with the wicket of Dominic Cork, who was caught at the wicket off Hollioake, the home side lost six batsmen in quick succession. The slump included four wickets in eight balls when the Surrey captain beached Kerr’s defences and had Selwood caught behind off a wide delivery, before Tim Murtagh uprooted Welch’s leg stump and Sutton was defeated by Jonathan Batty’s direct hit at the bowler’s end.

Kevin Dean, who was dropped at slip before getting off the mark, then put on 23 runs for the last wicket with Mohammad Ali. As the match reached its conclusion it looked as if their alliance would be crucial, until Clarke and Salisbury showed they had other ideas.

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