Vitality Blast 2023: May 26th
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Vitality Blast 2023: Scores, Match Reports, Results, Scorecards May 26th
Here are the Vitality Blast May 26th 2023 Scores, Match Reports, Results and Scorecards for all the matches being played today.
North Group
Worcestershire vs Yorkshire
Adam Finch hit three sixes in the final over from Matthew Fisher to earn Worcestershire Rapids a dramatic two wicket win over Yorkshire Vikings in a Vitality Blast encounter at New Road.
The pace bowler made light work of the 19 needed from the final over to earn the Rapids a second win in the space of 24 hours.
Finch set the tone by depositing the first ball from Fisher over the mid on boundary and then the fourth and fifth deliveries also disappeared over the ropes to spark wild scenes of celebration.
The 22-year-old ended with 30 not out from just 10 deliveries as the Rapids squeezed over the finishing line with one ball to spare.
He came in at 145-7 in the 18th over and struck all but one of the remaining 31 runs required to pull off a remarkable victory against the odds.
It means Yorkshire are still searching for their first win of the season and in all they have gone 11 matches since their last triumph in all cricket last August.
David Wiese showed all his experience with the ball on his Vikings debut and looked to have seen his side to victory.
The 38-year-old, who has been playing for Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, scored a quickfire 15 but it was his bowling which bamboozled the home side.
He mixed up his pace and line to great effect to finish with 3-18 from four overs – but then came Finch’s dramatic assault.
The Vikings were restricted to 175-9 after opting to bat with Pat Brown picking up three wickets in his final two overs to finish with 3-28.
Spin accounted for 11 of the Rapids overs with Club Captain Brett D’Oliveira picking up two more wickets after his 3-28 against the Steelbacks while Michael Bracewell and Usama Mir bowled tightly.
The Rapids made one change from the side which had launched the competition with victory away to Northamptonshire Steelbacks, with Dillon Pennington replacing fellow pace bowler Mitchell Stanley.
The Vikings gave a debut to former Sussex all-rounder David Wiese who has been playing in the IPL for Kolkata Knight Riders.
Yorkshire captain Shan Masood opted to bat but his side were on the back foot after Dillon Pennington struck in each of his opening two overs.
Dawid Malan steered the first delivery he faced straight to keeper Ben Cox and Adam Lyth’s mistimed pull lobbed straight into the hands of mid on.
It brought back memories of Pennington’s explosive 4-0 new ball burst in a Blast game at Headingley two years ago.
Jonny Tattersall and Masood set about trying to rebuild the innings during a partnership of 47 but both fell in successive overs from Rapids captain Brett D’Oliveira.
Tattersall was pouched at short fine leg sweeping at the leg spinner who then saw Masood hole out off a slog sweep to deep mid wicket.
The spin combination of Usama Mir, Michael Bracewell and D’Oliveira kept the scoring rate in check during the middle overs until Jordan Thompson struck three successive sixes off the latter.
He raced to 36 off just 18 balls before aiming another big hit at Bracewell and skying a simple chance to backward point.
Wiese announced himself in impressive fashion with a flat six off Adam Finch over extra cover but then the former Sussex player and Ben Mike both lofted Pat Brown straight to deep mid wicket in the same over.
Some big blows from Matthew Revis – including successive sixes off Finch - and Dom Bess gave the Vikings innings late impetus with 31 runs gleamed from the 19th and 20th overs.
Revis top-scored with 42 from 31 balls before he was run out in the final over from Brown who then bowled Jafer Chohan after he backed away to the final delivery.
The Vikings carried their momentum into the start of the Rapids innings with a double breakthrough from Matthew Fisher.
D’Oliveira mistimed a pull and perished just inside the boundary and Bracewell chased a wide delivery and was caught behind.
Adam Hose, who top-scored with 61 against the Steelbacks, was quickly into his stride and struck Thompson for three fours in the final over of the powerplay.
Jack Haynes also looked in good touch and on drove and off drove Revis to the boundary as the 50 stand was completed in 32 balls.
Thompson broke the partnership after it added 78 when he held onto a fine return catch away to left to account for Hose.
Haynes went in the next over from Jafer Chohan when he failed to clear deep mid wicket.
Ben Cox clubbed his way to 26 off 14 balls before he turned Revis straight to deep square leg and Ed Pollock aimed a legside blow and was bowled by Wiese.
When Kashif Ali was caught at cover off Thompson, it looked all over for the Rapids but then Finch went into overdrive to secure victory.
Worcestershire batting hero Adam Finch said: “Where did that come from? I don’t really know if I’m honest. Still a little bit speechless about it.
“I’ve been working on my hitting over the last couple of years with Kadeer Ali (Assistant Head Coach) and it is something I’m trying to take more seriously and it is nice to kind of see it materialise.
“Brett D’Oliveira has told us at the start of the tournament ‘express yourself and play an exciting brand of cricket and we can win from anywhere’ and I genuinely believe that.
“I just try and stick to the key things that myself and Kaddy have talked about and just try and execute it as best as I could and thankfully it happened.
“I don’t think I will ever manage to hit three in a row like that again but really glad about it.
“With the last six, I think it was the longest period of time in my life, seeing the ball in the air and then keep going. It was really nice to see it land!.”
Yorkshire all-rounder Jordan Thompson said: “Obviously disappointed but when you are in a bit of a rut these kind of games tend to go against you.
“Looking towards the last over, I personally felt we were over the line but that’s T20 cricket sometimes.
“You look at our batting line and our big guns at the top, Dawid Malan and Adam Lyth, and when you lose them it can be tricky but we’ve got quite a lot of strength in depth.
“That is one of the positives of this year. We’ve got quite a young group but quite a lot of power.
“We had momentum going into the second half and we knew the kind of length to bowl on that pitch to create uncertainty..
“We had a three or four over spell when conceded 10-12 runs an over and maybe could have been going into those last five overs with a bit more to protect.
“But it’s T20 cricket, New Road is a quick scoring ground, it’s a short boundary and we just couldn’t get over the line.”
Nottinghamshire vs Derbyshire
Joe Clarke blasted 68 from 29 balls on his 27th birthday before 23-year-old Matt Montgomery revealed more evidence of why Nottinghamshire rate him so highly with a high-quality 51 as the Outlaws launched their Vitality Blast season with a four-wicket victory over neighbours Derbyshire Falcons.
The South Africa-born player, who made 177 against Essex in the LV= Insurance County Championship last week, was making his county debut in the 20-over format and took to it impressively as the Outlaws eased home with 18 balls to spare despite Zak Chappell’s two for 29 against his former team and George Scrimshaw taking three late wickets in five balls.
Half-centuries by Wayne Madsen (61) and Luis Reece (53) in a second-wicket stand worth 112 in under 10 overs had seemed to set up the Falcons for a bumper total as they sought to win at Trent Bridge for the first time in 10 years but the Outlaws fought back well to restrict them to 178 for six.
There were debut wickets for quicks Shaheen Shah Afridi and Conor McKerr - on loan from Surrey with three senior Outlaws bowlers out injured - while skipper Steven Mullaney took two for 37.
The Falcons lost Pakistan batter Haider Ali to ex-Derbyshire quick McKerr’s first legitimate ball in an Outlaws shirt when a loose drive saw him caught at third man but with Madsen smashing 36 from his first 18 balls it turned into a decent powerplay for the visitors, who were 56 for one after six having elected to bat first.
Madsen looked in superb touch from the start, following three consecutive fours against the off-spin of Matt Carter - also celebrating his 27th birthday - with a couple off Samit Patel’s left-arm spin before bringing McKerr back down to earth with an effortless pick-up for the night’s first six.
Reece caught the mood, despatching Patel and Mullaney over the ropes with the Outlaws unable to find a way to stem the runs as Madsen’s ninth four took him to a 26-ball half-century and the Falcons reached halfway at 102 for one.
The two took a six each off Mullaney as Reece, the latter going to a 30-ball fifty with his. But when Madsen slapped the last ball of the same over into the hands of extra cover it sparked an Outlaws fightback that saw Reece hole out to long-off - a wicket on Blast debut for Matt Montgomery - and Luis du Plooy bowled behind his legs as 118 for one became 134 for four.
Tom Moores, in his first action for six weeks after breaking a finger, pulled off a sharp stumping to remove Anuj Dal and Afridi claimed his first Outlaws scalp as Aneurin Donald missed an attempted ramp, the second half of the innings going in favour of the home side, with 76 runs added for five wickets lost.
Needing nine per over, the Outlaws raced to 78 for one from the powerplay, 26 off them in a single over of Mark Watt’s left-arm spin as Clarke smashed five fours and a six, completing a 23-ball half-century along the way, Alex Hales - wearing number three on his back after Afridi claimed his regular 10 - the solitary casualty as he skied Chappell to backward point.
The home side’s progress was checked when Clarke was pinned leg before by a Chappell yorker that avenged a huge hit over long-off earlier in the over, but Montgomery joined another debutant - the New Zealand international Colin Munro - in adding 60 in 34 balls for the third wicket to bring the requirement down to 32 in 45 balls.
Munro fell when he scooped Zaman Khan to long leg, Montgomery departing in similar fashion after hitting six fours and a six in his 29-ball innings as Scrimshaw gained some consolation for an otherwise expensive evening by taking three wickets in the same over as Mullaney and Moores were dismissed before Samit Patel scrambled the winning runs.
Notts Outlaws’ Joe Clarke said:
“It’s nice to be back playing T20 cricket in front of this crowd and the result couldn’t have been better. To get off to a winning start is always pleasing.
“We thought we were going to be chasing 200-plus with the start they had. Wayne Madsen and Luis Reece batted really well and it was credit to our bowlers for pulling it back. Conor McKerr bowled really well on debut for us and Shaheen Afridi showed what he’s about and they made it a slightly easier chase for us.
“And Matt Montgomery was fantastic. I was speaking to Alex Hales while he was batting and he said it was one of the most impressive T20 debuts he has seen from someone in a Notts shirt. He just goes from strength to strength.”
Derbyshire’s Wayne Madsen said:
“We were 30-40 runs shy of where we needed to be. We got off to a really good start and after 10 overs we were in a good position to get 220-230.
“But Reecy and I both got out at a similar time which stunted our momentum and we never really got going again. 70 odd in the last 10 overs is just not good enough in this format.
“And then we didn’t execute well enough with the ball as we can do and ultimately not enough runs on the board and not starting well enough with the ball has cost us.
“There are still 12 games to go and we started last season in a similar way before picking up momentum but we need to start winning soon.”
Leicestershire vs Warwickshire
Birmingham Bears maintained their 100 per cent record in the Vitality Blast with a five-wicket victory over Leicestershire Foxes at the Upstonsteel County Ground.
The Foxes’ bleak start to the campaign continued after they totalled a modest 166 for seven on an excellent pitch on which The Blaze had piled up 212 in 20 overs earlier in the day. Every dismissed batter except one passed 15 but none reached 30 as Danny Briggs bowled with his customary nous for 4-0-15-3.
That looked chaseable for a Bears side including Glenn Maxwell for the first time and the debutant crunched a muscular 47 (27 balls) as his side reached 167 for five with 15 balls to spare. Sam Hain followed his unbeaten 83 in the Blast opener against Yorkshire with an unbeaten 65 (43) as only Callum Parkinson (four for 33) caused much interference to the Bears’ pusruit.
After the Foxes chose to bat, Nick Welch (30, 14) and Sol Budinger provided a punchy start with an opening stand of 49 in five overs but then fell to successive balls. Welch’s middle-stump was plucked out by Chris Woakes before Budinger heaved Dan Mousley to deep mid-wicket.
Briggs imposed a brake with a skilful spell and bowled Arron Lilley to secure his 240th T20 wicket. Number 241 soon followed when Colin Ackermann sought the crowd at long on but found only Mousley just inside the rope, much to the disappointment of the adjacent crowd who were jockeying for position in light of the dazzling prize, for any spectator who caught a six, of a ticket to see Tom Jones at the Uptonsteel County Ground on July 15.
It's not unusual to see Briggs among the wickets in T20 and when his third followed, Wiaan Milder top-edging to short fine leg, the Foxes had stuttered to 106 for five. Rishi Patel and Rehen Ahmed landed a few blows in a stand of 38 in 21 balls but the Foxes appeared to have come in under par.
The Bears' reply raced to 22 from 13 balls before the early charge was halted by the introduction of Parkinson. He bowled Alex Davies and Paul Stirling in his first five balls but Mulder’s first over, which went for 18, returned the initiative to the Bears and they never relinquished it.
Bowling to Maxwell and Hain when both are in good nick is about as tough as it gets in world T20 and they broke the back of the chase with a stand of 90 in 51 balls. Maxwell lapped Will Davis to short fine leg, but Mousley kept up the impetus with an 11-ball 16 before ladling Parkinson to long leg.
Three balls later, Parkinson had Chris Benjamin caught behind to complete his third T20 four-for, but Hain advanced to a 35-ball half-century and the Bears eased home, Hain striking the winning run to long leg with the Tom Jones ticket still unclaimed.
Foxes coach Paul Nixon said:
"We were hoping for 185 or 187. That seemed very achievable on that pitch and we got away nicely with a great little platform to start with but then we lost two quick wickets and with two new guys going in in the powerplay it's tough.
"After that we never got going again. We let Danny Briggs dictate which was disappointing because I don't feel that wicket turned hugely, though Callum Parkinson showed his class and took four wickets when we bowled.
"Then Maxwell showed his world class. He has done it round the world and he knows his game inside out and that's what we have got to learn. He gave us a masterclass there but I thought the lads stuck at it and bowled well. Callum showed his quality and Will Davis bowled well in the powerplay.
"We came in short with the bat and that put pressure on the bowlers. We needed to get two or three wickets down in the powerplay but it didn't happen and after that it was an uphill battle."
Bears batter Sam Hain said:
"It's great to have started with two wins because momentum early in the competition is paramount. There are still areas in which we can improve, that's for sure. We know we haven't played the perfect game yet but I think that shows the strength of the side, when you are not playing your best cricket but still getting the job done.
"Danny Briggs bowled incredibly well. We have got a lot of bowling options which is always handy in a T20 competition. Credit to Leicestershire, they got off to a flyer but then we stuck to our guns well and brought them back under control. Were they a little bit light? You never ever know in T20 at the halfway stage. We know this is a tough fielding ground and it can be quite tough to defend but, though I thought they bowled really well, Maxy showed how good he is. He played unbelievably and took the pressure off me - I could just nudge a couple of twos and the odd boundary and let him do the job!
Northamptonshire vs Durham
Leg-spinner Nathan Sowter ran riot with career best bowling figures of five for 15 as Northamptonshire Steelbacks were humbled by Durham in this Vitality Blast clash at Wantage Road.
The Australian-born T20 specialist bagged his maiden first five-wicket haul setting off a Steelbacks batting collapse of five for 17 to restrict them to just 137 in their 20 overs. Opener Graham Clark then powered 102 off just 49 balls (13 fours, four sixes) to record his first T20 century as Durham motored to their target with 6.4 overs to spare to win by 10 wickets.
Sowter’s wickets had stemmed the tide after Ricardo Vasconelos (52) and Saif Zaib (28) shared an enterprising 62-run partnership in 6.2 overs.
That stand came after the Steelbacks lost dangermen Chris Lynn and David Willey in the space of five balls at the start of their innings and gave them a strong platform of 98-3 at the start of the 14th over before Sowter ran amok.
Earlier Steelbacks skipper David Willey won the toss but was soon ruing his decision to bat first as Bas de Leede marked his Durham T20 Blast debut in style. First the Dutch international’s inswing accounted for Australian power hitter Lynn who had his off-stump knocked back on 0 off the third ball of the innings. Then Willey, playing his 250th career T20 game, was caught behind on 1 to leave the hosts stumbling on 2 for 2.
Josh Cobb struck de Leede twice through point for four and top-edged him over the keeper for another boundary before his innings ended tamely when he offered Sowter a return catch off a full toss.
At this point the Steelbacks were 36 for three at the end of the powerplay, but Vasconcelos quickly picked up the mantle, twice powering Ben Raine through the covers. He was unafraid to go the aerial route which kept the fielders interested, benefiting on 15 when Luke Doneathy shelled a difficult chance in the deep running backwards. But he grew in authority, pulling Liam Trevaskis over deep square leg for six and scooping de Leede for four.
Zaib played the supporting role but soon found the boundary with a lovely late cut off Sowter. He had reached 16 when he was dropped off a full toss, called a no ball for height, before pulling the free hit high over the Family Stand at backward square leg.
At this stage the Steelbacks were set for a sizeable total, but the wheels came off when Vasconcelos was caught behind off Sowter and Zaib followed in the next over caught at deep backward square off Raine.
Sowter then struck twice in the space of three balls to remove all-rounders Tom Taylor and Rob Keogh, both lbw, before he had Andrew Tye caught behind to give him his fifth wicket. It was left to Trevaskis to mop up with two wickets in the final over.
Clark got Durham off to a flier, smashing 24 off Josh Cobb’s first over, including two huge sixes either side of the ground before smashing Willey over mid-off for four. He eased to his half-century off just 21 deliveries as Durham moved to 77 at the end of the powerplay.
Cumbrian-born Clark kept going, striking all round the ground, surviving a sharp chance early in his innings and more straightforward ones on 79 and 92. A couple of miscues landed safe but otherwise he looked in complete control, passing his previous highest score of 91 with a huge six down the ground.
Alex Lees (37) was happy to play the supporting role, but found the ropes when he hit Tye for consecutive boundaries.
Durham leg-spinner Nathan Sowter said: “It was an incredible night for Durham to go on from what we've been doing the Championship and turn up here and put in a performance like that. The boys are stoked and I think the coaching staff are even happier. It’s nice to get a win and get our campaign started.
[On celebrating his fifth wicket] “I love my celebrations! It just adds a bit more to the game. It means a lot to get five wickets for Durham.
[On Graham Clark who received a standing ovation from both home and away supporters] “Graham Clark was stunning. He’s worked so hard on his game. He played well last year early in the tournament, he probably was disappointed, but to start the tournament like tonight was incredible. He’s a good man, so I’m very happy for him and hopefully he can roll on to Sunday and do another good job. He’s absolutely flying after that century in the Championship at Bristol. Everyone’s very happy for him.
“I had a spell at Durham last year, it gave me a taste of it and it's nice to come back out here and represent Durham. Hopefully we can push for higher honours, and we’ll see where the tournament takes us.”
Northamptonshire head coach John Sadler said: “That was a poor night, disappointing. We got out batted, out bowled, out fielded. It can happen in T20 and it happened to us tonight, unfortunately. We were below par.
We’ve talked about new batters taking the initiative and being positive. There's also a balance of managing your risk a little bit and giving yourself time to get in and just get a feel of the pitch. We've been out done by three leg spinners so far in two games. They've completely ripped us apart in the middle. So, we have to have a look at how we're going to go about that. We have to come back better, stronger, simple as that. There’s still a very long time in this comp, but time will quickly run out if we don't click into gear.
[On batting collapses] “It's been a common thing throughout all our cricket this year really. We talk about getting established in a partnership. I thought Vasco and Saif did that today really well under pressure. Cobby gave us a bit of impetus and then they played really well. They got a platform and then at the 10-over mark, even though we were slightly down on runs, we were in a position to launch a bit of an attack and then we just lost both of those, we had two new batters at the crease and then it kind of unfolds again.
“Graham Clark played beautifully, fair play to him. He came out with that intent from ball one. He put us under pressure and deserved to get 100, smacking it to all parts. Sometimes when you got a low score to defend, you need to take early wickets, [but] they came out, smacked it in the powerplay and to be honest the game was probably gone after about two or three overs really. So, other than the Saif and Vasco partnership there's no real positives.”
South Group
Gloucestershire vs Glamorgan
Timm van der Gugten and Ruaidhri Smith held their nerve to usher Glamorgan to a tense two-wicket win over Severnside rivals Gloucestershire in a thrilling Vitality Blast encounter at Bristol's Seat Unique Stadium.
Set 162 to win their first outings of the South Group campaign, the visitors appeared to be cruising when Colin Ingram and Kiran Carlson staged a third-wicket stand of 69. But Gloucestershire refused to give in, veteran left arm seamer David Payne bowled superbly well to claim 3-17 and the game was on a knife-edge with the visitors requiring 15 from 12 balls at the death.
Netherlands international van der Gugten helped himself to two sixes in smashing 21 from 12 balls and Smith weighed in with a maximum of his own as Glamorgan chased down their target with five balls to spare.
Handed his Blast debut, Ben Charlesworth had earlier top-scored with 56 and shared in stands of 52 and 48 with Ollie Price and Graeme van Buuren for the fifth and sixth wickets respectively as Gloucestershire recovered from 18-3 to post 161-9. Dan Douthwaite claimed 4-23, including three wickets in four balls in the 19th over, but Jamie McIllroy was the pick of the Glamorgan bowlers, making a mess of Gloucestershire's top order to finish with 3-30.
Beaten for the second time in three days, Gloucestershire were again left to reflect on a below-par batting performance, their top-order in particular failing to fire.
Put into bat, they made the worst possible start, losing three wickets in the space of eight balls with the score on 18. Chris Dent took two boundaries off McIllroy before skying a catch to mid-on and falling for 11, while overseas recruit Grant Roelofsen swung at a ball outside off stump and was caught behind for seven off the bowling of Timm van der Gugten. Dismissed for 113 by Kent only 48 hours earlier, the home side's confidence was dealt a further blow when Miles Hammond was pinned lbw without scoring by the excellent McIllroy.
Ollie Price twice drove van der Gugten down the ground for four and Jack Taylor utilised a short leg-side boundary to hoist the Dutchman over cow corner for the first six of the innings to afford the home side impetus in the fifth over. But a return of 46-3 from the powerplay was below par and Gloucestershire further subsided in the seventh over, Taylor finding himself cramped for space by Douthwaite, top-edging a pull to point and departing the scene for 16.
Their inexperience notwithstanding, Price and T20 debutant Charlesworth did their utmost to rebuild from the wreckage of 49-4, Gloucestershire's fifth wicket pair scoring at better than a run-a-ball during the middle overs to raise a half century stand from 34 deliveries. Both stepped down the pitch to slow left armer Prem Sisodiya, whose first three overs cost 31 runs, as the hosts finally threatened to break free of Welsh shackles.
McIllroy returned to bowl the 14th over and restore Glamorgan control, inducing Price to chip to short cover, the 21-year-old having contributed a valuable 37 runs in a stand of 52 with Charlesworth, who was then joined by van Buuren with the score on 101-5.
Charlesworth may have been navigating hitherto uncharted waters, but he rose to the challenge in forthright fashion, pouncing on anything short or wide to plunder a series of boundaries and bring the Bristol crowd to life. He received a life on 45, dropped at deep point by Ingram off the bowling of van der Gugten, and went on to bring up his maiden Blast 50 in the next over, carving McIllroy through the covers for his sixth four.
But his progress was abruptly halted by Douthwaite, who also removed Zafar Gohar and Matt Taylor in claiming three wickets in four balls in the penultimate over to ensure the Gloucestershire tail did not wag.
Having missed the entirety of last season's Blast campaign through injury and making his first appearance in the short format since 2021, van Buuren offered Charlesworth staunch support in a sixth-wicket alliance of 48 in five overs before opening his shoulders at the death to finish unbeaten on 32 from 19 balls.
Gloucestershire needed to take early wickets and Matt Taylor and David Payne combined to remove openers Eddie Byrom and Sam Northeast inside two overs, the former held in the deep and the other caught at backward point as Glamorgan slipped to 17-2.
But Carlson and Ingram moved quickly to redress the balance thereafter, the third wicket pair advancing the score to 61-2 before the fielding restrictions were lifted. They went after Gloucestershire's spinners in particular, taking the aerial route and striking the ball cleanly to put pressure on Price and Tom Smith. When Zafar was introduced from the Bristol Pavilion End to bowl the eighth over, the result was just the same, as the flow of boundaries continued unabated.
Desperate to break the partnership, Gloucestershire skipper Jack Taylor recalled Payne, and the veteran left arm seamer had Carlson caught at backward point for 35. But Glamorgan's captain had at least ensured that those who followed him could afford the luxury of scoring at little more than a run a ball.
Accordingly, Ingram and new partner Cooke adopted a relatively low risk strategy in easing Glamorgan towards their target, punishing the bad ball when it came along at the same time as rotating the strike and running quick singles to exert pressure on the fielders.
Having raised 25 via 18 balls, Chris Cooke offered a sharp return catch to Price with the score on 121 in the 14th over. Payne then bowled Ben Kellaway for three in the next over and, when Ingram top-edged Price to short fine leg and went for a 33-ball 47, Glamorgan were 129-6 and the outcome in doubt.
Needing to score 30 from the last four overs, Glamorgan suffered a further setback, Douthwaite falling to the returning Matt Taylor in the 17th over as Gloucestershire, cheered on by a raucous audience, scented blood.
Big-hitting van der Gugten then hoisted Smith over the square leg boundary to bring the asking rate down to 15 off 12 balls, only for Zafar to bowl Sisodiya. Ruaidhri Smith swung Zafar over the backward square boundary to leave the Welsh county needing six off the final over and van der Gugten won the game with one mighty hit over mid-wicket the the expense of Smith.
Gloucestershire bowler David Payne said: "Although it was disappointing to lose the game like that at the death, we should not really have been in a position to win it after scoring 161. It was testament to our character and determination that we fought back like that and we bowled and fielded really well in the second half of their innings to make it close. Of course you want your top-order batsmen to hard in the early overs, because that's T20. But it can be a fine line between coming off and not scoring enough and, at 49-4, we'd probably lost one wicket too many. But then a couple of youngsters have put their hands up and done the business, putting together a decent partnership to haul us back into the game. They have played hardly any T20 cricket between them, yet Ollie Price and ben Charlesworth have shown us more experienced players how to do it. Two defeats is not a great start, but there were positives for us in this game and we have to take those into the next match."
Glamorgan all-rounder Dan Douthwaite said: "It was an exciting match at the death, but it should not have been had we got the job done properly. We lost four quick wickets, at which point they were right back in the game. But we do pride ourselves on batting all the way down and Tim van der Gugten held his nerve at the end to win us the game. I thought we bowled and fielded pretty well and I'm delighted to take a personal best with the ball. That side of our game was good, but I could and should have done better with the bat. My job is to come in late in the innings and finish things off, and that didn't go to plan on this occasion. But a win is a win and we'll go to Somerset on Sunday with confidence."
Surrey vs Kent
Sean Abbott annihilated Kent’s bowling to equal the fastest hundred in Vitality Blast history and set up Surrey’s second win in as many days.
The Australian all-rounder unleashed a barrage of six-hitting at the Kia Oval, recording 11 maximums and seven fours and taking 30 off a single Kane Richardson over as he reached three figures from just 34 balls.
Abbott had previously hit just one half-century in limited-overs cricket, but his breathtaking knock – matching the late Andrew Symonds’ ton for Kent against Middlesex 19 years ago – transformed Surrey’s fortunes after they had slid to 64 for four.
An unbroken sixth-wicket partnership of 129 from 46 with Jordan Clark enabled Surrey to post a daunting 223 for five and that proved too much for the Spitfires, who subsided to 182 for seven in reply, despite a valiant opening partnership of 108 from 59 between Daniel Bell-Drummond and Tawanda Muyeye.
Having won the toss and opted to bowl, Kent picked up two wickets inside the first four overs, with Will Jacks – having just slammed George Linde for the first six of the game over long-off – miscuing to backward point.
Richardson, who had taken two wickets in successive balls to end the Spitfires’ game against Gloucestershire, missed out on a hat-trick but did strike with his next delivery, clipped into the hands of deep square leg by Laurie Evans.
It looked as though the Curran brothers might take control of the innings, sharing a stand of 30 from 25, but both departed in quick succession – Tom superbly run out by Jordan Cox’s sharp pick-up and throw – and Grant Stewart having Sam caught at mid-off.
Instead it was Abbott, shunted up the order to six, who dominated as he clattered Linde over long-on for three maximums, racing to his half-century from 23 balls before launching his merciless assault against Richardson in the 17th over.
The 31-year-old almost missed out on his century, with Linde dropping him on 87 when he sliced Joey Evison to short third, but he took advantage of that let-off to get there with two more back-to-back sixes off Michael Hogan.
Despite shipping 90 from the last five overs of the innings, Kent made a spirited start with the bat as Bell-Drummond and Muyeye repeatedly peppered the boundary to reach 75 in the powerplay.
Bell-Drummond raced to his half-century from 24 balls and Muyeye – dropped by Jamie Smith after swiping a hook off Gus Atkinson – reached the landmark for the first time in the Blast, just four deliveries behind his partner.
Sunil Narine eventually made the breakthrough, having Bell-Drummond caught in the deep for 52 and, with the required rate climbing above 12 an over, the Spitfires began to crumble, losing a further four wickets in eight balls.
Muyeye was among those, caught on the boundary for 59 from 37 as Surrey shared out the wickets, with Narine, Jacks and Tom Lawes claiming two apiece and Sam Curran the other.
Surrey’s SEAN ABBOTT, who equalled the fastest T20 Blast hundred from 34 balls and finished 110 not out, said:
“It was a good pitch tonight and I’m just happy to spend some time in the middle and really go on with it. I was grateful Sammy (Curran) and Batts (coach Gareth Batty) gave me the opportunity to bat in front of two very good power hitters – we bat right down to 11, so I’m over the moon.
“The scoreboard probably suggests if they’d taken a couple more wickets, we’d be right in it but there’s zero panic in this changing-room. There’s certainly a lot of trust in the blokes that come in after the batters.
“Batting records could not be further from my radar! I’ve spent some time in the middle already this year in the red-ball stuff and I was talking with my skipper back home, Moises Henriques, about coming into a lot of games here quite close together. I asked him how I could improve and contribute.
“My numbers aren’t great with the bat, I know that, and he was honest with me. He told me to keep working on a couple of things and if I get an opportunity, to go out there and do my best, so it was nice to get some positive feedback and reassurance from him – that certainly helped tonight.”
Kent opener DANIEL BELL-DRUMMOND, who scored 52 from 27 balls, said:
“We always had it on our minds that it was never going to be simple just because they were four down – they’ve got a long batting line-up but I didn’t expect them to get 223.
“It was crazy – I’ve never seen an innings like Sean Abbott’s on a cricket field, his striking was so clean. We were playing on a central strip and he was hitting it to all parts of the Oval, so we’ve got to hold our hands up. It was a match-winning knock and not much we could have done.
“Once we knew the score we had to go for it, there was no second-guessing. Tawanda Muyeye got off to a brilliant start and I felt very good too.
“It was a shame we couldn’t continue, especially myself as the senior player. But they held their nerve and it was too much for us in the end.”
Hampshire vs Middlesex
James Vince fired a warning to Hampshire Hawks’ Vitality Blast rivals with an outstanding unbeaten 88 off 55 balls as the holders got their 2023 campaign off and running by thrashing Middlesex.
Vince was the 2022 competition’s leading run scorer, passed 5,000 T20 during his explosive innings, and is now 61 runs away from being the Blast’s all-time leading run-getter.
He put on 91 with Australian Ben McDermott as Hampshire put their opening day embarrassment to Somerset behind them to win by eight wickets.
Pieter Malan was excellent for his 80 but Middlesex slid away to only set the Hawks 172 – which was completed with 13 balls to spare.
Friday at been declared Champions Day at the Ageas Bowl as Hampshire and Southern Vipers flaunted their Blast and Charlotte Edwards Cup trophies. Vipers began the day by dominating Western Storm.
Hampshire had been routed for their lowest Blast at Taunton on Wednesday. But instead of licking their wounds, they took it out on Middlesex.
McDermott set the tone for the chase with an early scoop before almost wiping out the umpire with a straight drive in a three-boundary destruction of Tom Helm.
Vince was no shrinking violet at the other end and forced McDermott to duck out the way of his own swat down the ground as their 50 stand came up before the end of the powerplay.
McDermott picked out wide long off of 39 but Tom Prest continued the onslaught alongside his captain.
Vince was at another level though, his half-century came and went in 28 deliveries, and he then skipped down the pitch to deposit his first six to go alongside his 10 fours.
Prest wristily flicked his first soon after in a 17-ball 30 before ending too soon when he was bowled by Luke Hollman.
Vince was caught at deep fine leg, but got a reprieve as Middlesex’s poor evening got worse as they had too many fielders outside the ring. The victory came soon after.
Middlesex were stuck in and looked on course for 200 thanks to Stevie Eskinazi’s early swinging for 31, Malan’s speedy anchoring 80 and Ryan Higgins’ 27.
But no one else reached double figures and the last six wickets fell for 10 runs in 16 balls and they failed to bat out their overs.
Eskinazi flailed a massive six over midwicket in the first over in a productive powerplay – where Joe Cracknell was the only wicket to fall with 53 runs on the board.
Mason Crane went for 13 off his first five balls before a googly went through Eskinazi to end a 43 run stand with Malan, before Max Holden holed out the next ball Crane bowled.
Higgins reverse swept the hat trick ball away and slog swept two sixes during his innings defining 68 stand with Malan before he was caught and bowled by Chris Wood off his toe.
Malan’s innings showcased powerful striking down the ground and pin-point shots through gaps in the field as his 13th T20 fifty came off 30 balls.
Hampshire’s death bowling was impeccable though, as James Fuller – whose first two overs had gone for 30 – picked up Malan and John Simpson in his third over.
Nathan Ellis had Hollman caught behind off a skier, Nathan Fernandes and Tom Helm were run out and Martin Andersson struck out to deep extra cover to conclude a sorry end to a promising innings.
Hampshire batter and captain James Vince:
"It is really nice to bounce back after a really poor night at Somerset.
"If we are breaking the game done they got a decent start but we pulled it back at the end. At one point 190 or 200 was on but we kept them to 170 on a decent wicket which was going to be a reasonable chase but we got off to a good start with the bat.
"McDermott played really well up front and then Presty came in and he got the rate down from sevens to four and from then on it was fairly straight forward.
"It was nice to contribute and spend some time in the middle. It is always easier to bat in T20 when you get a partnership going. The runs coming at the other end makes it easier for each other.
"After the fashion of the defeat the other night it was important to win at home to Middlesex."
Middlesex batter Pieter Malan:
"I reckon we were about 15-20 runs short and it would have been nice to get close to 200 to put some pressure on them but it wasn't to be.
"We lost too many wickets in a cluster at the end. We needed someone like myself to hang around another couple of overs and target the short boundary.
"We keep losing too many wickets at one time. We need to build a couple more partnerships. It is 20 overs but it is still plenty of time to put more partnerships together and get us to a good score.
"They batted really well and Vince is a class act and has done that loads of times before. Once they got going it was difficult to stop them.
"The quality is there for us. In the four day stuff we have shown we can hang with the best teams. It is just we need to do the good stuff for longer which we are falling too short of at the moment.
"We have good plans and quality players, we need to keep sticking at it and be positive and take the positive options."
Sussex vs Somerset
Tom Kohler-Cadmore led the way with 72 as Somerset made it two wins from two in the Vitality Blast, chasing down a target of 184 to beat Sussex Sharks by five wickets with three balls to spare at the 1st Central County Ground.
The game had been held up for nearly ten minutes in the seventh over of the Somerset reply when Nathan McAndrew and debutant Shadab Khan collided on the Hove outfield going for a high catch offered by Kohler-Cadmore.
Both players spent several minutes on the ground receiving treatment from Sussex’s medical staff before being helped to their feet. McAndrew was able to bowl his four overs after passing a concussion protocol but Khan, the Pakistan leg-spinner who was making his Sussex debut, had to leave the field.
It left Sussex skipper Ravi Bopara, who had earlier scored an unbeaten 88, without one of his key bowlers and with Fynn Hudson-Prentice’s 2.3 overs costing 51 runs Bopara was left with little room for manoeuvre, especially when Kohler-Cadmore started to move through the gears.
The 28-year-old right-hander, who joined Somerset from Yorkshire during the winter, relished a flat pitch and fast outfield as he shared a match-winning stand of 104 off 63 balls with skipper Tom Abell. Kohler-Cadmore hit five sixes and five fours from 42 deliveries and when he was caught off Tymal Mills trying to guide the ball over third, the target was down to 22 from four overs.
Abell was run out off the final ball of the penultimate over for 42 with both he and Lewis Gregory stranded at the same end, but Gregory hit the second ball of the final over to seal the deal for Somerset.
Until he lost one of his key bowlers, Bopara must have thought his unbeaten 88 would have been the difference. The 38-year-old had warmed up for the Blast by scoring 144 from 49 balls in a second team match against Middlesex on Tuesday, and although there was never any danger of a repeat against an experienced Somerset attack he played superbly nonetheless.
In his 440th game in the format, Bopara came in after Sussex had lost Tom Clark and Tom Alsop in Craig Overton’s first two overs and he barely played a false shot until the last over when Abell dropped a difficult diving catch at mid-wicket.
Bopara hit seven sixes and three fours with principal support coming from Ali Orr who scored 33 including three successive boundaries off Matt Henry before he was superbly caught one-handed in his follow through by Gregory.
Michael Burgess helped Bopara add 57 in 42 balls for the fifth wicket but the total swelled when Henry was taken for 16 off the last four deliveries of the innings as Bopara swung him over mid-wicket for six off a no ball and guided the free hit to the backward point boundary.
Despite losing Will Smeed in the second over, Somerset had 50 on the board after four thanks to Tom Banton’s assault on Hudson-Prentice whose over went for 29, including successive sixes.
Banton was well caught by the diving Orr trying to help a bumper from Mills over long leg but after the delay, with a second Hudson-Prentice over costing 16 as Kohler-Cadmore hit him for successive sixes, Somerset always had the chase under control.
Somerset batter Tom Kohler-Cadmore, who made 72, said, "The lads were awesome in the first half of the game, I thought Roelof van der Merwe bowled unbelievably and made the difference for us. We made it a tad tight at the end and the other lads said it was tough to win here but it's two wins from two and that gives us some momentum.
"I'd like to have been at the end, when I score some runs I like to be the one who wins it for the team. It was my night tonight but I'm sure other lads will stand up in other games.
"I thought at every key moment we were able to put the pressure back on them and get key boundaries when we needed, so we were always up with the rate or ahead of it."
Sussex coach Paul Farbrace said, "Shadab Khan is okay, although he's got a bit of a sore neck. The doctor felt it was best to take him out of the game.
We tried to replace him with Henry Crocombe but the match referee [Steve Davis] said it had to be like-for-like which is why Harrison Ward came on. It could have been a lot worse but that can happen when you've got two committed players going for the same ball in a swirling wind. The good thing is they are both okay.
"In terms of the game we thought we were 10-15 runs over par, but then bowling-wise we could have done a lot better. Our plans were good but I just don't think we executed them particularly well and they deserved to win the game.
Ravi Bopara played brilliantly, it was an innings from someone with a lot of experience who showed the way to play with strong cricket shots, not slogging."
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