In fading light, Surrey squeezed home with two wickets and one ball to spare in their Clydesdale Bank 40 League Group A curtain-raiser, against Lancashire at Whitgift School. When Rory Hamilton-Brown and Steven Davies were in full flow it looked as though the Lions would romp home with ease. Their first wicket stand of 133 in 15 overs got the hosts off to a blistering start in response to the Lightning's highest one-day total against Surrey. But the Lions faltered after the departure of Usman Afzaal in the 27th over. They were eventually seen home by Stewart Walters and Rao Iftikhar Anjum, who squirted the penultimate delivery to the rope at third man. Earlier, the visitors were indebted to an innings of 118 off 96 balls from Stephen Moore, who marked his one-day debut for Lancashire with a new List A career best.

With Davies taking three boundaries in an over off Kyle Hogg, Surrey were already 30 without loss three overs into their pursuit of Lancashire's 290-6. Hamilton-Brown brought the fifty up with a straight six off Daren Powell in the 7th, which he followed up with a checked drive straight down the ground for four.

Davies took the Lions' total to 99 by depositing Tom Smith into the Brighton Road. In the next over Hamilton-Brown and Davies recorded a new record opening stand for Surrey against Lancashire in limited-overs cricket, beating Darren Bicknell and Alistair Brown's 100-run alliance at the Oval in 1993.

In the same over, the 12th, Hamilton-Brown posted his first half century in one-day cricket, which came from just 35 balls, and Davies reached his own fifty off 37 deliveries. Steven Croft's solitary over included two straight sixes, the second of which, struck by Hamilton-Brown, landed in Nottingham Road.

Davies eventually dragged Smith on to his stumps to finish with 59. Three overs later, Afzaal cover drove Powell for a maximum, to bring up the 150, before Hamilton-Brown pulled another six, this time over the head of the man at long leg.

The Surrey skipper went in the 22nd over, caught at straight mid-wicket attempting to pull Stephen Parry from outside his off stump for a 64-ball 92. Parry shelled a routine caught and bowled chance off Afzaal, who celebrated his reprieve by clubbing the very next delivery over extra cover for six to bring up the 200.

When Afzaal was defeated by Sajid Mahmood's slower ball, the Lions were left needing 82 runs off 13 overs for victory. A brief shower saw the target reduced to 283 to win off 39 overs under Duckworth-Lewis. But until the ball found the middle of Walters's bat in the 36th over, it looked as though the Lightning had managed, by some twist, to turn things around.

Earlier, after losing the toss and being invited to bat, Lancashire lost Paul Horton in the second over, caught at backward point off Andre Nel. Smith and Moore both hit sixes over mid-wicket - Smith off Iftikhar in the fifth over and Moore off Nel in the eighth.

In the tenth over Smith fell to a swirling catch at long-off off the bowling of Jade Dernbach, after which the visitors went five overs without hitting a boundary

Moore brought his fifty up in the 17th over off just 44 deliveries. With the 29-year-old sweeping Matthew Spriegel for a maximum in the 20th over, Lancashire were 132-2 at the halfway stage in their innings.

Two overs later Moore, on 67, offered Davies a difficult chance behind the stumps off the bowling of Stuart Meaker. Aswell Prince was just starting to flay the Lions' attack to all parts when he was caught at long-off off Hamilton-Brown's third ball.

Moore posted an 85-ball hundred in 33rd over before being caught on straight boundary off Iftikhar four overs later. 245-4 became 254-5 when Croft, who had hit Spriegel for a low and straight for six in the 29th over, played on to Nel.

But thanks to skipper Mark Chilton hitting three sixes, off Meaker, in the penultimate over of the visitors' innings and another maximum off Dernbach in the 40th, Lancashire recorded their highest total against Surrey in one-day cricket; beating the 279-6 they made at Old Trafford in 1990.

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