Yorkshire’s winning run in the Twenty20 Cup kept on rolling in stunning fashion at the expense of Roses rivals Lancashire.

The White Rose county have put themselves firmly back into contention to qualify for the quarter-finals with four North Division wins on the trot, dramatically defending a below-par 135 for eight to win by four runs at a packed Old Trafford.

Wicketkeeper and opening batsman Gerard Brophy top scored with an entertaining 44 from 36 balls as the Tykes, who won the toss and elected to bat, stuttered in their 20 overs.

Yorkshire were given hope when Tim Bresnan took two wickets to help reduce the hosts to 20 for three in reply, including the scalp of Andrew Flintoff lbw for a first-ball duck.

Home pair Francois Du Plessis and Steven Croft shared a fourth-wicket partnership of 68 to swing the game back their way.

But this pair went in successive overs from Adil Rashid and Darren Gough, before Bresnan brilliantly defended 12 off the last over.

The 23-year-old, who snapped up the prized wicket of Flintoff on his return from six weeks out with a side strain, also claimed the man-of-the-match award courtesy of bowling figures of two for 12 from four overs.

Bresnan said: “There was a lot of pressure on that last over. Some days they go your way, others they don’t. That is why you do your practice.”

Asked whether he will have alerted the England selectors, the all-rounder added: “Performances like this won’t hurt.”

Yorkshire had got off to the worst possible start when Andrew Gale was run out in the first over for a duck.

Sajid Mahmood then bowled Michael Vaughan for one in the next over, leaving the score at eight for two, before Brophy and Anthony McGrath united for a handy third-wicket partnership of 59 in eight overs.

McGrath, who had top scored in all of Yorkshire’s previous five Twenty20 games, notched 25 from 26 balls, while Brophy equalled his second-best score in the competition with an innings that included seven boundaries.

Once those two had gone, the Tykes struggled to recover from 85 for four in the 13th over.

Jacques Rudolph hit 23 off 15 balls but was smartly caught by Andrew Flintoff in the deep, while Bresnan finished 13 not out.

Lancashire leg-spinner Simon Marshall finished with impressive figures of three for 11 from three overs.

Gough, who claimed two for 31 from his four overs, said: “That’s the best we have played all season. I thought we were 15 or 20 runs short – 150 would have been a good score.”

The Tykes next face Durham at Headingley on Sunday.