In the absence of his opening partner, Karl Brown has very much decided to pick the baton back up.

He hits Steven Patterson's first ball for four with a lofted straight drive down the ground, and then gets into position really early to pull a second boundary down to fine leg.

Brown is on 35 from 23.

Jos Buttler dabs a single to get off the mark instantly.

He was down to bat at four in the Lancashire order but, presumably, buoyed by their encouraging start the hosts want to keep their foot firmly pressed to the accelerator.

Here comes England leggy Adil Rashid. Yorkshire need a wicket - can he grab one?

James Taylor
Ex-England batsman on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

That is exquisite - he's just pressed the finesse button on his games console, hasn't he?

You don't know where it's going to go, but it's gone for four.

Liam Livingstone's innings so far has been all about power - but now he's adding some finesse.

Getting into position to attempt a scoop, he has to adjust as the ball is pitched too full, yet still somehow manages to lift the ball past his shoulder and over the wicketkeeper for four. Superb improvisation.

Again, though, the Yorkshire comeback is a decent one as Steven Patterson prevents too much further damage.

Either way, Livingstone is ticking, he's now 33 from 22.

Lancashire 48-0published at 5 overs

5 overs

Livingstone 28, Brown 20

A chance - but dropped!

Karl Brown slams a shot in the air to David Willey at mid-wicket, but the former Northants man puts it down to his right. It was going quickly, but those need to stick, surely!

His misery is compounded as the opening pair continue to tee off, with both striking fours into the leg-side soon after.

Steven Patterson will bowl the final over of the powerplay.

It's a good comeback from Tim Bresnan though, now taking some pace off the ball and conceding just one further run from the over.

David Willey is taken out of the attack to be replaced by Ben Coad.

James Taylor
Ex-England batsman on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

That delivery was shouting 'hit me' on the way down from Tim Bresnan, and Liam Livingstone obliged nicely.

He's got shots all around the wicket - he's another of those 360 degree players.

Lancashire 36-0published at 3.4 overs

3.4 overs

Now then, Liam Livingstone is starting to get his eye in!

Two fours in the first three deliveries is followed by the first six of the match, pulled high into the stand at cow corner.

Not a smashed pint or phone in sight though...

Image source, Getty Images

Surrey's dream start has ended - first Jason Roy goes for an impressive 55, and Aaron Finch (49) falls with the next ball, agonisingly short of a half-century of his own. They're on 109-2 against Kent into the 10th over.

Leicestershire have started their reply strongly against Worcestershire - who could only post 148-8. Bowler Clint McKay, who took 5-11 earlier, looks like being the match-winner there.

Elsewhere, Hampshire and Warwickshire have made decent starts with the bat against Middlesex and Northants respectively - but they're only a few overs down in those matches.

Click here for full scorecards.

David Willey continues from the other end and, despite pitching the ball up a tad shorter, is brutally slapped through extra cover for four by his England team-mate Liam Livingstone - his first boundary of this Roses battle.

But four dots and a single, from the final ball, marks another relatively unspectacular over under the clouds in the north west.

Learning from David Willey's early errors, Yorkshire captain Tim Bresnan drops his length back and hits the pitch hard.

Just five come from a tidy second over, which included some smart fielding on the boundary rope which kept a certain boundary to just three.

There's a decent crowd in at Old Trafford by the looks of things - and they've been treated to three absolutely belting cover drives from Karl Brown during that first set of six, each of them going for four.

England all-rounder David Willey tries to pitch the ball up, searching unsuccessfully for even a hint of swing, and the width he offered up was duly punished.

A solid start for the Red Rose.

Karl Brown and Liam Livingstone are opening the batting for Lancashire, David Willey has the new ball in his hand for Yorkshire.

Let's crack on.

BBC Radio 5 live sports extra

BBC Radio 5 live sports extra's coverage of tonight's game at Old Trafford is under way - go to the top of the page and click on the audio icon to listen online.

The teams are on their way out, the start is just a few moments away.

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Image source, Rex Features

Who said Twenty20 was a batsman's game? Aussie seamer Clint McKay has just finished with fabulous figures of 5-11 as Leicestershire have restricted Worcestershire to 148-8 at New Road. That's the first five-wicket haul of this year's competition.

The other game already under way has started well for Surrey - they're 74-0 from their opening six overs against Kent, with Jason Roy (31*) and Aaron Finch (41*) seeming to be in dangerous mood. Finch has just hit three huge sixes in a row.

Meanwhile, Birmingham Bears against Northants and Middlesex's match at Hampshire both start at 19:00 BST - we'll keep you posted on those games too as we go along.

In the meantime, let's crack on with the more serious stuff.

Lancashire have won the toss and will bat first, which means it won't be long before we get a peek at their England duo Liam Livingstone and Jos Buttler.

Yorkshire also name a couple of England white-ball specialists in their side, with bowlers David Willey and Adil Rashid both included.

Lancashire: Brown, Livingstone, Lilley, Buttler, Vilas, Croft, McLaren, Clark, Parry, Bailey, Junaid.

Yorkshire: Lyth, Kohler-Cadmore, Marsh, Handscomb, Leaning, Willey, Bresnan, Rashid, Coad, Rafiq, Patterson.

We've had smashed pints...

And smashed phones...

Who knows what'll be in the firing line next?

It's not for us to speculate, of course, but it did get us thinking - what's the most bizarre thing you've ever seen while sat in the stands at a cricket match?

Please do let us know by using #bbccricket on Twitter. We'll look forward to that.

A new franchise-based Twenty20 competition may well soon be on its way to England, but the T20 Blast has proved to us all this week that there's plenty of life in the old dog yet.

We're only seven days into this year's competition and we've already managed to cram in record team totals, last-ball thrillers and some Steven Finn batting heroics - what's not to love?

And then there's the action away from the grass...