DURHAM produced a shambolic batting performance in their NatWest T20 Blast match at Leicester.

After being put in again they collapsed to 26 for five and despite a partial recovery through Keaton Jennings their total of 120 for nine allowed Leicestershire to coast to a six-wicket win with 3.3 overs to spare.

Chris Rushworth, making his first T20 appearance of the season, raised hopes when he knocked out Mark Cosgrove's off stump with the third ball of the reply then held a simple return catch offered by Mark Pettini.

But at 16 for two Sunderland's Ben Raine joined Ireland's Kevin O'Brien to complete a good all-round night for both.

O'Brien, best known for a 50-ball World Cup century against England, had figures of 4-0-19-1, held three catches, ran out Jennings and hit 28 off 25 balls.

Raine took three for 24 and scored 21, and although both fell to Scott Borthwick they laid the platform for Umar Akmal and Niall O'Brien to finish the job.

The early mayhem was self-inflicted. Phil Mustard shaped to leave the first ball he faced, changed his mind at the last second and edged it to the wicketkeeper.

In the second over Mark Stoneman played round a full-length swinger from Raine and was bowled and in the third Graham Clark was run out.

He was called for a suicidal single by Michael Richardson, whose selection at No 4 continued to look flawed when he drove a catch to mid-off.

Ryan Pringle was also driving when he was bowled by Raine, bringing in Calum MacLeod, who was brought in to give Paul Collingwood a rest ahead of tomorrow's Royal London Cup tie between these sides.

MacLeod and Jennings repaired the damage with a stand of 58 in 8.4 overs, but when the time came to accelerate MacLeod's attempted reverse paddle offered a simple catch off the top edge.

Jennings hit two fours off Raine in the sixth over, the last of the powerplay, but there were only three more boundaries in the remaining 14 overs.

McLeod hit two of those, the first coming from a free hit for a no-ball by Tom Wells.

At 106 for six with two overs left Borthwick found the mid-wicket boundary off Clint McKay before holing out in the same area two balls later.

Then Jennings was run out by a direct hit from mid-wicket, having made easily his best T20 score of 42 from 41 balls. Barry McCarthy had to listen to the quacking of a duck as he departed after lofting a catch off Raine.

Cosgrove was spared that indignity when he was out first ball, but Durham tamely subsided to a second successive heavy defeat.