Adam Lyth is ready to prove Jason Gillespie right following the Yorkshire coach’s suggestion that the England Test hopeful is a better Twenty20 player than the statistics make out.

Lyth is in contention to start this summer's NatWest Blast competition when the Vikings take on Leicestershire under lights at Headingley on Friday.

The left-hander may have only made 61 appearances since debuting in the game’s shortest format in 2008, and he did not play at all last year largely due to international commitments.

Lyth’s record in T20 cricket does not make for happy reading. He has only scored two fifties in a career haul of 939 runs at an average of 18.78.

But he is also an exceptional fielder, highlighted by his part in two stunning boundary catches against Lancashire and Leicestershire in the 2014 Blast, and his off-spin bowling is a useful asset.

“Adam will certainly come into the calculations,” said coach Gillespie.

“His record in T20 is actually quite modest if you look at his numbers, and he’s a much better player than his numbers suggest in my opinion.

“But, at the same time, stats over a period of time don’t really lie.

“What Adam brings is that he’s a good ball striker, has all the shots, he’s a gun in the field, and he’s a more than handy off-spinner. So he brings three skills to the table.

“Multi-skilled players are important, so he will come in to the reckoning for a spot I’m sure.”

Lyth, 28, played in two Royal London one-day Cup matches at the back end of last season - the quarter-final at Essex and the home semi-final against Gloucestershire.

He scored 96 in the latter match, and that has given him confidence that he can shine against the white ball.

“I’d love to play,” he said. “I didn’t play at all last year because of England, but fingers crossed I’ll play a big part in our T20 games coming up.

“I came back for the semi-final last year and got a 96 - I should have got a hundred - so as far as I’m aware I’ll be playing in that.

“But I believe I have still got a lot to offer in the T20, absolutely.”

An abdominal injury to David Willey, a certain starter at the top of the order up until the last fortnight, has left Gillespie and captain Alex Lees searching for a replacement opener.

Andrew Hodd and Will Rhodes are options, but Lyth and Lees opened the batting in the three T20 pre-season fixtures in Dubai in late March.

They shared opening stands of 34, 80 and 20 against Leicestershire, MCC and Lancashire.

Should Lyth get the nod there, it would mean Yorkshire have the same opening partnership in all three forms of the game - a rarity in the modern era.