Leinster Lightning Bolts took complete control of their Future Series encounter against Munster Heat after a dominant all-round performance on the opening day at Oak Hill.

Munster struggled to build any sustained momentum after batting first and were dismissed for 176. Callum Stevenson made 11 before falling to Mark Tonge, while Sunil Gautum provided the most substantial contribution at the top of the order with a patient 38 from 74 deliveries, including seven fours.

Awais Saghir added 13, but Dineth Sumanasinghe fell without scoring as the Heat slipped from 59 for one to 63 for three. Niall Donnelly made 12 and captain Zubair Khan contributed 19, but neither could turn their starts into the major innings Munster required.

Seneth Sumanasinghe, Chinmay Shinde, William Shields and Mark Donnelly all reached double figures, while Usman Sherzad struck an unbeaten 20 from 18 balls, including two sixes, to lift the total to 176.

Olly Riley was the outstanding bowler for the Bolts, returning excellent figures of four for 15 from 8.3 overs. Mark Tonge and Yash Balasubramanium claimed two wickets apiece, with Dan Murray and Andrew Doheny also among the wickets.

The Lightning Bolts response was emphatic. Despite losing Tom Johnson to an early run-out, Rob O’Brien and Daniel Forkin added 140 for the second wicket to put their side firmly on top.

Forkin struck 79 from 93 balls, hitting 15 fours, before he was run out by Saghir. O’Brien continued to dominate, reaching an unbeaten 104 from 102 deliveries with 17 fours and a six.

Captain Philippe le Roux increased the tempo with a rapid 50 from 36 balls, including four sixes, as the Bolts closed on 260 for three from 41 overs—a commanding lead of 84 runs with seven first-innings wickets remaining.

They will be looking for more quick runs on day two, before declaring and hoping not to have to bat again. Munster may have other ideas.