Scrivens, Grewcock shine as Essex end losing streak

Allrounder Jodi Grewcock claimed 3 for 38 as Essex held off Yorkshire in a tense finish at Chelmsford to snap their side's seven-match losing streak in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup.

Grewcock was backed up by fellow spinners Sophia Smale (2 for 45) and Abtaha Maqsood (1 for 36), while seamer Esmae MacGregor (2 for 33) conceded just a single from the 48th over to tilt the contest in Essex's favour.

Ami Campbell's belligerent 64 from 49 balls, along with a patient 52 from Sterre Kalis, had threatened to take Yorkshire over the line after they restricted the home side to 241 despite skipper Grace Scrivens' knock of 87 from 109.

Campbell earlier played a key role as a stand-in bowler, taking 3 for 33 when frontline seamer Hannah Rainey had to be withdrawn from the attack after delivering successive no-balls above waist height.

Scrivens won the toss and strapped on her pads alongside Lissy Macleod, making her final appearance at Chelmsford before retiring from the game - and the Essex opener's farewell proved to be brief.

Lucy Randle-Bissell had Macleod caught behind in the second over, but the home side were motoring as Scrivens carted Rainey for three quick boundaries and Grewcock announced her arrival with a series of powerful pull shots.

Grewcock (37 from 36) had begun to dominate, outscoring her partner before she fell to spinner Jess Jonassen (3 for 30), with Campbell leaping at midwicket to claim a superb catch.

Scrivens passed her half-century by carving Randle-Bissell to the cover fence but Smale, having helped the captain to add 62, patted a slower-ball bouncer to point - and the home side never regained momentum.

Rainey's mandatory withdrawal from the attack in the 35th over became a blessing in disguise for Yorkshire as Campbell took up the slack for the remainder of the innings. Operating in tandem with legspinner Sarah Glenn, she stifled Essex's batters in the closing stages and also claimed the key wicket of Scrivens, who drove straight to mid-off as the pressure mounted.

The visitors made an uncertain start to their chase as former Essex loanee Lauren Winfield-Hill miscued a return catch to MacGregor and Jonassen pulled Amelie Bishop straight to deep square leg.

Despite MacGregor's miserly five-over spell of 1 for 9, Essex employed a double-pronged spin attack after the powerplay, with Smale and Maqsood applying the brakes.

Erin Thomas was castled by Smale's perfect flighted delivery, but Kalis remained unruffled while Campbell launched a counter-attack, thumping boundaries off MacGregor and Maqsood. The left-hander lifted the tempo further, clubbing three sixes before sweeping a boundary to post 50 and, although Grewcock struck twice in successive overs, Yorkshire still looked on track.

Smale returned to tempt Campbell out of her crease, with Ella Claridge taking off the bails, but Rebecca Duckworth and Beth Langston took it deep with a partnership of 40 before MacGregor and Grewcock closed out the game.