A magnificent innings from David Miller could not prevent Hampshire from taking their second Friends Life t20 title at Cardiff last night.

Yorkshire’s South African overseas star lit up the final with an unbeaten 72 off 45 balls, including five fours and five sixes, to keep his county in the hunt right to death as they chased 151 on a slow and wearing pitch.

Hampshire captain Dimitri Mascarenhas defied a torn shoulder muscle to put the skids under Yorkshire with two wickets in a metronomic opening spell, with the score later slipping to 47-4 after nine overs.

It was a long way back as the White Rose needed to score another 104 from 11 overs without semi-final hero Jonny Bairstow following his departure to England’s left-arm spinner Danny Briggs.

But man-of-the-match Miller, who earlier scored 47 in the hammering of Sussex, had other ideas.

He controversially survived a TV umpire decision on a Neil McKenzie catch at mid-wicket while on seven to hit three sixes off Sean Ervine in the 12th over before hitting two more to take the target down to 21 off the last two.

Miller, 23, also battled injuries to both hamstrings and both calves, but was given little support from his team-mates.

Briggs bowled an exceptional penultimate over to only concede seven and leave 14 needed off the last, bowled by left-arm swing bowler Chris Wood.

Wood removed Tim Bresnan, Rich Pyrah and, with 11 needed off the last ball, Azeem Rafiq.

“That would probably be my number one knock,” said Miller at Saturday’s post match press conference, where he was flanked by captain Andrew Gale.

“I really enjoyed it but it was bitterly disappointing because we got in a position to win.”

Gale said: “When we were 40-4 I thought someone had to play very well to get us in a position to win and David played out of his skin.

“Going into the last over I was backing us.

“If it wasn’t for David we could have been bowled out for 80.”

Like Mascarenhas, Ryan Sidebottom also impressed with 2-20 as Hampshire eked out 150-6 after winning the toss, thanks mainly to opener Jimmy Adams’ 43.

Yorkshire’s ground fielding was not at its best but they were happy to be chasing 151.

Earlier, Bairstow claimed the man-of-the-match award in the 36-run semi-final win over Sussex with a career-best unbeaten 68 to fashion a recovery from 36-3 to 172-6.

He shared 82 in ten overs for the fourth wicket with Miller after medium pacer Scott Styris had taken three wickets. Bresnan and Pyrah then struck twice apiece as Sussex faltered, despite Chris Nash’s 80 not out, finishing on 136-8.

Yorkshire face Warwickshire in tomorrow's final Clydesdale Bank 40 match at Scarborough.