Durham 131 for 4 (Lees 62) beat Yorkshire 128 (Potts 5-17) by six wickets
England seamer Matthew Potts excelled with a superb T20 career-best five for 17 as dominant Durham ran through Yorkshire en-route to a six-wicket Vitality Blast victory at York Cricket Club.
Potts, who made his T20I debut for England against West Indies earlier this month, was destroyer in chief on a helpful Clifton Park pitch as the White Rose, inserted, were bowled out for 128 in 19 overs. James Wharton top-scored with 26.
But Durham's batters were far more commanding and dotted the i's and crossed the t's on a fourth North Group win in six games in 18 overs of their chase, with captain Alex Lees hitting the contest's only six in a season's best 62 off 46 balls.
While Durham are second in the table, Yorkshire have now reached the halfway stage in their campaign having won two and lost five and are second-bottom.
Durham made an ideal start as Zak Foulkes trapped Dawid Malan lbw for a golden duck at the end of the first over and Callum Parkinson's left-arm spin forced Jonny Bairstow to miscue to mid-off for four at the end of the second.
And when Adam Lyth, on 18, hoisted Parkinson out to deep midwicket midway through the fourth over, Yorkshire were reeling at 28 for three.
Bairstow, schooled in the Minster City, was playing his first Blast game of 2025 following IPL duty and a subsequent calf injury, and it came on the ground where he played club cricket as a junior.
Further damage came in the eighth over as Potts made the perfect start to his fantastic four-over burst when he trapped Will Luxton lbw and, two balls later, had a tentative Will Sutherland caught at slip, leaving Yorkshire 55 for five.
Wharton pulled the same bowler out to deep backward square-leg shortly afterwards before a career best return was achieved when Dom Bess was lbw playing to leg.
Nathan Sowter struck before Jordan Thompson was another lbw victim for Potts, his fifth wicket, as he tried to whip a full toss to leg on 19.
That left Yorkshire 100 for nine after 16 overs, the majority of the 4,500 sellout having just cheered ironically when their side reached three figures.
New Zealand fast bowler Will O'Rourke and Jack White then shared 28, the highest partnership of the innings, and recorded career best scores of 21 not out and 13 respectively as Yorkshire gave themselves a glimmer of hope.
White, batting for the first time in this format, was bowled by Ben Raine to wrap things up, though 52 runs were added for the last two wickets.
White then had Graham Clark caught at cover on the cut - 8 for one in the third over of Durham's chase.
But, in truth, the visitors advanced comfortably thanks to their captain, who held things together with a cautious rather than carefree innings.
Spinners Jafer Chohan and Bess removed Ollie Robinson, 21, and Colin Ackermann as the score reached 63 for three after 10 overs.
But opener Lees reached 50 off 39 balls, and he shared a stand of 60 another ex-Yorkshire player, Will Rhodes, 31 not out.
Lees miscued Thompson's seam to mid-off late on, but it didn't matter.
