NatWest T20 Blast 2015: Lancashire Lightning Win Their First Title by 13 Runs — Alex Davies Wins Player of the Match at Edgbaston

Lancashire Lightning won the NatWest T20 Blast 2015 on 29 August 2015 at Edgbaston, Birmingham, defeating Northamptonshire Steelbacks by 13 runs in the final. Lancashire scored 166/7 in 20 overs; Northamptonshire were restricted to 153/6 in 20 overs. Alex Davies scored 47 off 26 balls — anchoring a 77-run opening partnership — as Player of the Match. Steven Croft captained Lancashire Lightning to their first T20 Blast title. Lancashire's Blast win ended a long wait for the Northern county in the domestic T20 format.

Alex Davies 47 Off 26: The Opening Partnership That Built Lancashire's Total

Alex Davies' 47 off 26 balls in Lancashire's 166/7 — part of a 77-run opening partnership that gave Lightning the platform their middle order needed — was the Player of the Match innings that set the tone for Lancashire's Blast title win. Davies, Lancashire's wicketkeeper-batter who had been developing through the county's batting ranks, provided the explosive top-order quality that Finals Day consistently rewards in the competition's batting-first approach. The 77-run opening stand gave Lancashire's 166/7 a depth that Northamptonshire's chase — despite reaching 153/6, the kind of total that can win T20 matches — could not match across 20 overs. Steven Croft's captaincy gave the title-winning campaign the consistency that a county's first-ever Blast triumph requires.

Lancashire's First T20 Blast Title: An End to the Long Wait

Lancashire Lightning winning the 2015 NatWest T20 Blast — under Steven Croft's captaincy — completed the Northern county's first domestic T20 championship in the Blast's history and its predecessor formats. Lancashire, one of England's most historically significant county cricket clubs (multiple County Championship titles, Lord's finals), had competed throughout the T20 Cup (2003-2014 in various guises) without winning the final. Their 13-run margin over Northamptonshire in the 2015 final — 166/7 against 153/6 — was a comfortable winning margin that reflected a complete team performance across both batting and bowling. Northamptonshire reaching the 2015 final as runners-up was notable: the Steelbacks would return the following year and win their own Blast title, the 2016 edition, at the same Edgbaston ground.

NatWest T20 Blast 2015 in Context

The NatWest T20 Blast 2015 Final at Edgbaston on 29 August 2015 gave Lancashire Lightning their most significant domestic T20 prize after years of competing in the format without a championship result. The 2015 competition — the second edition under the 'Blast' brand (introduced in 2014) — retained the Finals Day format at Edgbaston that the competition has used throughout its history, giving the August Saturday final its characteristic Edgbaston crowd atmosphere. Lancashire's 13-run win over Northants reflected a Finals Day where both teams had the batting quality to compete across a 20-over final but Lancashire's combined Davies-fronted batting platform and bowling attack proved the more complete package on the day.