Yorkshire’s return to Clydesdale Bank 40 action was a losing one as Middlesex cruised to the top of the Group ‘A’ table with a six-wicket win at Headingley.

Rain reduced the county’s first 40-over clash for nearly two months to a 31 overs per side contest yesterday, and the hosts were struggling after being invited to bat first by Middlesex skipper Neil Dexter.

They lost Joe Sayers, Andrew Gale and Anthony McGrath cheaply as they slipped to 41-3 in the 13th over, but some power hitting from Gary Ballance and York’s Jonny Bairstow helped them to respectability at 196-7.

The pair hit six sixes between them, with Bairstow, who finished with 33 off 15 balls, hitting four of them and three in three balls over long-on as Corey Collymore went for 27 in the last over of the innings.

Yorkshire only had 51 runs on the board at the halfway stage of their innings as Middlesex bowled well in seaming conditions, and they struggled to find any tempo.

But Ballance set about a 53-ball knock of 71 in only his fourth one-day outing for the White Rose, sharing 111 for the fourth wicket with Adam Lyth, who added a calming 52.

The innings sprung into life in the 25th over as Ballance was the main protagonist in taking 17 off Steven Finn and then 22 off Steven Crook in the next.

But, despite two quick wickets for Ben Sanderson and Adil Rashid as Middlesex chased, the visitors recovered well thanks to third- wicket pair Paul Stirling and Chris Rogers, who put on 117 inside 14 overs.

With Middlesex at 64-2 in the 13th and the game in the balance, the Irishman and Australian raced to their 100 partnership in 12 overs as they took a liking to Rich Pyrah, McGrath and Ajmal Shahzad in particular.

Both reached their fifties off 37 and 40 balls respectively, with Stirling hitting two sixes, including a sweet strike over mid-wicket off Ryan Sidebottom the ball after reaching his milestone.

When he was bowled by Sidebottom for 57 off 40 balls, it was nothing more than a consolation strike for Yorkshire as Middlesex only needed 17 off 31 balls to win.

Shahzad also got Rogers for 51 off 44, but Jamie Dalrymple hit the winning runs with an over to spare.

This was Yorkshire’s fourth defeat in six 40-over matches, and leaves them with their backs firmly against the wall in terms of qualification for the semi-finals.

Not only were they undone by some slack fielding and poor bowling in the face of the onslaught from Stirling and Rogers, but they will look back with regret on their slow start with the bat.

The likes of Collymore, Finn, Crook, who took a remarkable catch to get rid of Bairstow as he held on to the ball while on his backside at deep square-leg, and Tim Murtagh all bowled well early on, but Yorkshire could have shown more intent.

Jacques Rudolph has still not received his work permit. If he does not get it today, he will almost certainly miss Wednesday’s Roses Championship clash with Lancashire.