Yorkshire Phoenix fluffed the chance of going top of Division Two of the totesport League when they were comfortably beaten by the new leaders Durham Dynamos at Riverside yesterday.

The defeat by 51 runs was their first of the season and it brought to a close a sequence of seven consecutive victories in all competitions.

Yorkshire knew they had to lose a match at some stage but they would have been much happier going into tomorrow's home Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy tie against Worcestershire with another win behind them.

Durham are proving this summer's surprise package. There was no doubting their superiority as they bowled out Yorkshire for 205 after knocking up 256-4, their highest score for three years and their best against Yorkshire.

Batting first on winning the toss, Durham were given the ideal start by Michael Hussey and Jon Lewis who took no risks in a solid opening stand of 85 in 23 overs. Deon Kruis bowled a tight line, his nine overs off the reel giving away only 18 runs, and most of the runs that were to be had came off Tim Bresnan.

Lewis was then smartly stumped off a wide from Richard Dawson who got plenty of turn and he caused Nicky Peng all sorts of trouble until the batsman decided to hit his way out of trouble.

Peng smacked sixes off Ian Harvey and Craig White while putting on 71 in 12 overs with Hussey, who was then well caught on the square leg boundary by Michael Lumb for 66 from 91 balls with eight fours.

Peng continued to put Yorkshire under pressure with 60 off 59 deliveries with six fours and two sixes but it was Phil Mustard's hurricane 53 not out that turned Durham's reasonable score into a formidable one.

One enormous six by Mustard dented a car roof and his half-century from just 26 balls was the fastest ever made by a Durham batsman in the competition, beating Gary Pratt's 37-ball 50 against Somerset in 2003.

Having cut Yorkshire up with the bat, Mustard went on to relish his work behind the stumps by holding on to three catches and also pulling off a smart stumping to send back Harvey and snuff out Phoenix's last real hope.

Although always ahead of Durham after a corresponding number of overs, Yorkshire were never able to break entirely free from tight bowling and the first six wickets each fell to a different bowler.

Matthew Wood and Michael Vaughan both looked at ease until getting out but the most enterprising batting came later on from Harvey, who top-scored with 47, and Ismail Dawood, who made 42 and played the shot of the match with a flicked six over mid-wicket off Mick Lewis.

Harvey was stumped while stood outside his crease to Paul Collingwood, who also had Dawood brilliantly caught left-handed at deep mid-wicket by Jon Lewis, leaving off-spinner Gareth Breese to finish off Yorkshire by getting rid of Bresnan and Kruis with consecutive deliveries.

Updated: 11:24 Monday, May 16, 2005