Yorkshire 353 for 5 (Fraine 143, Duke 111, Luxton 84) beat Northamptonshire 320 (Young 91, McManus 82, Keogh 59, Bess 3-63) by 33 runs (DLS method)
Centuries from openers Will Fraine and Harry Duke underpinned Yorkshire's convincing start to the Royal London Cup as Northamptonshire were beaten by 33 runs DLS at York's Clifton Park.
Fraine's all-format career-best 143 was ably supported by Duke's contrasting 111 as Yorkshire racked up 343 for 5 in 46 overs, also including teenager Will Luxton's 84. Fraine and Luxton dominated to start a batting day, while wicketkeeper Duke played the supporting role after the Vikings were inserted.
In reply, New Zealand opener Will Young, captaining Steelbacks in this opening Group B fixture, kept their hopes alive with a top-score of 91. But he was out with just under 200 runs still required, and they were bowled out for 320 inside 45 overs. Dom Bess finished with 3for 63 off nine.
Lewis McManus nearly matched Young with an entertaining, consolatory 82. Four overs per side were lost due to late morning rain.
Fraine displayed power on the leg side and touch on the off as he hit 12 fours and eight sixes in 107 balls, usurping his Championship 106 against Surrey at Scarborough in 2019.
In posting a second county century in front of a 3000-strong crowd, the 26-year-old made a Northamptonshire attack who erred on a pitch with good pace and bounce pay. Fraine pulled Tom Taylor over the pavilion and later hoisted Nathan Buck over the hospitality marquee at long-on.
Duke, 20, also faced 107 balls. Shortly after Fraine had reached his century off 85 balls - at which point Yorkshire were 142-0 after 23 overs - Duke's fifty came off 62. The busy Duke scooped with increasing regularity as he moved to his second List A century after 125 versus Leicestershire last year.
When Fraine sliced Saif Zaib's left-arm spin to backward point, the damage had been done at 209 for 1 in the 30th. But there was more to follow.
England Under-19s batter Luxton followed Fraine's dominance, hitting well straight for 10 fours and three sixes in 53 balls as the Steelbacks failed to stem the flow of runs until the final two overs when only 11 were conceded.
Duke reached three figures off 97 balls, and Luxton's second career fifty came off 35 a delivery later. Both men were caught in the penultimate over off Buck, the pick of the visiting attack with 2 for 66 from nine, following a second-wicket partnership of 134 inside 15 overs.
Northamptonshire slipped to 36 for 2 inside six overs of their reply, including debutant seamer Ben Cliff inducing a leading edge from Ricardo Vasconcelos to wide mid-on after only four balls. Ben Coad also had Emilio Gay caught at slip.
Young and Zaib shared 82 for the third wicket to get the innings back on track, though the road ahead remained a long one.
Young was strong square on both sides of the wicket in his 64-ball innings, adding two straight sixes off the left-arm spin of debutant Harry Sullivan to a dozen boundaries. But he and Zaib fell in the space of five overs, leaving Northamptonshire at 158 for 4 in the 24th over. Zaib was stumped off Bess and Young miscued a pull at Coad to mid-on.
Steelbacks had little option but to plough on. And they did, first through Rob Keogh's 59.
A feature of this fixture was that runs were largely scored with authenticity rather than agriculture. Keogh was no different. But he handed Sullivan his maiden wicket by picking out deep cover, and it was the first of three wickets for 17 runs which all but ended the contest as the score fell from 237 for 4 in the 34th over to 254 for 7 in the 37th.
Sullivan also bowled James Sales and Bess had Taylor caught and bowled. Bess struck again before wicketkeeper McManus threatened a late and remarkable heist with four sixes in 62 balls, before falling lbw to Tom Loten.
