Another blistering innings from Ian Harvey could not stop Yorkshire from losing by seven wickets to Leicestershire at Grace Road to bow out of the Twenty20 Cup at the end of their North Division programme.

The only consolation for Yorkshire was that even a victory would not have taken them through to the quarter-finals because Derbyshire would still have finished above them after their win against Nottinghamshire.

Harvey rattled up 77 out of Yorkshire's 177-5 but Darren Maddy clinched it for the home side with an unbeaten 72, Leicestershire winning with nine balls to spare.

Adam Warren gave Yorkshire hope by bowling opener Hylton Ackerman in the third over to make Leicestershire 16-1, but Yorkshire-born John Sadler slammed 27 from just 12 balls with three fours and two sixes. He drove consecutive deliveries from Warren for big sixes and then struck a four before being sensationally caught in front of the sightscreen by Harvey.

Maddy, whose previous six innings in Twenty20 cricket his season had brought him 60 runs, had a fortunate moment on 24 when Ismail Dawood missed a stumping chance but he was in great form for the rest of the time, putting on 53 in six overs with Dinesh Mongia and then an unbroken 70 in seven overs with Jeremy Snape.

Maddy, who cracked 111 at Headingley last season, received 52 balls, smacking eight fours and a six, while Snape's unbeaten 39 off 23 deliveries contained three fours and a six.

Harvey's astonishing assault got Yorkshire off to a flying start and the Australian so dominated the crease that by the time he was dismissed he had made his 77 out off 99-4 in 12 overs, the next highest scorer at that stage being Richard Pyrah with six.

Harvey had faced 45 balls, plundering eight fours and three sixes, and no-one else had scored a boundary.

He saw Craig White lose his leg-stump to a swinging yorker from Willoughby's first ball of the second over but then totally dominated a 56 stand in five overs with Phil Jaques who was quite happy to watch the action unfold.

Harvey lashed a full toss from Willoughby over mid-wicket and out of the ground for six and smashed three fours in an over off Ottis Gibson before racing to his 50 out of 57-1 with seven fours and a six off 25 balls.

Willoughby was driven for another enormous six by Harvey but his great innings ended when he rifled the left-arm bowler low to extra cover where Ackerman held on to a fine catch.

After going through a quiet spell, life was injected into the innings by Matthew Wood, who belted three fours and two sixes in an over from David Masters, but, in attempting to clear the rope again off Maddy, he was caught by Gibson.

Anthony McGrath's 33 was his best knock of the tournament and he put on an unbroken 24 in the last two overs with Tim Bresnan.

Yorkshire return to Championship cricket against Worcestershire at New Road tomorrow. Michael Lumb has been dropped and Joe Sayers comes in for his first match of the season.

Updated: 11:13 Thursday, July 07, 2005