2022 Vitality T20 Blast Discussion

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Overseas players for the 2022 Vitality Blast

Some of the world's best players will be playing in the 2022 Vitality Blast this summer. Here's a breakdown of who each team have signed for the 20th anniversary of the T20 competition.

Birmingham Bears
Carlos Brathwaite (West Indies), Paul Stirling (Ireland - available for first 12 games and Finals Day if required, due to international commitments), Nathan McAndrew (Australia)

Derbyshire Falcons
Shan Masood (Pakistan), Suranga Lakmal (Sri Lanka), Dustin Melton (Zimbabwe).

Durham
David Bedingham, Ashton Turner (both Australia)

Essex Eagles
Simon Harmer (South Africa), Daniel Sams (Australia)

Glamorgan
Colin Ingram (South Africa), Michael Neser, Marnus Labushagne (both Australia)

Gloucestershire
Zafar Gohar (Pakistan), Marcus Harris (Australia), Naseem Shah (Pakistan - available until the end of the group stage), Glenn Phillips (New Zealand)

Hampshire Hawks
Ben McDermott, Nathan Ellis (both Australia), Kyle Abbott (South Africa)

Kent Spitfires
Qais Ahmad (Afghanistan), George Linde (South Africa)

Lancashire Lightning
Dane Vilas (South Africa), Tim David (Australia)

Leicestershire Foxes
Naveen-ul-Haq, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (both Afghanistan)

Middlesex
Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Afghanistan), Jason Behrendorff, Chris Green (both Australia)

Northamptonshire Steelbacks
Jimmy Neesham (New Zealand), Chris Lynn (Australia)

Notts Outlaws
Dane Paterson (South Africa), James Pattinson, Dan Christian (both Australia)

Somerset
Peter Siddle (Australia), Marchant de Lange, Rilee Rossouw (both South Africa)

Surrey
Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard (both West Indies)

Sussex Sharks
Rashid Khan (Afghanistan), Josh Philippe (Australia), Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan - until mid -June)

Worcestershire Rapids
Colin Munro (New Zealand), Dwayne Bravo (West Indies)

Yorkshire Vikings
Shadab Khan (Pakistan), Haris Rauf (Pakistan - avalable for first five games), Finn Allen (New Zealand - replaces Rauf)

 

[MenInG]

Who has been the best performer at The Blast?

 

[James]

<b>Vitality Blast T20 preview- Can the Spitfires make it back to back titles?</b>

The 20th edition of the T20 Blast commences on Wednesday when holders Kent Spitfires entertain Somerset at Canterbury, whilst Yorkshire Vikings up against Worcestershire Rapids.

With the hope of the pleasant weather continuing during the Blast competition, once again fans are set to enjoy some super cricket as the Blast continues to be a competition that attracts a huge following.

Last years final was between Kent and Somerset, with Kent victorious by 25 runs.

Once again Somerset look to have a squad that is capable of going close. The West country side’s first and only T20 Blast title came back in 2005. Since then, they have finished runners up four times and have even lost three consecutive finals between 2010 and 2012.

Somerset boasts a host of big-name overseas players including Australian bowler Peter Siddle, Marchant de Lange, Matt Renshaw and Rilee Rossouw who are all capable of producing winning moments in games.

Having reached T20 Finals Day in two of the previous four seasons, Somerset are expected to figure very much in the shake-up come the end of the Blast campaign.

No team has ever managed to win back-to-back titles, while only five sides have claimed multiple titles.

One side aside from Somerset who have always been consistent in the Blast are Nottinghamshire. The Outlaws have won two of the last five titles and have also reached four of the previous six Finals Days.

Captained by the reliable Dan Christian, the Outlaws will be very confident of challenging for the title in 2022. Along with T20 specialists Alex Hales, Samit Patel and Ben Duckett, they are a side very much feared.

The Sussex Sharks are having a disappointing red-ball campaign but when it comes to the white-balll format of the game, they are a different unit.

The Sharks reached their second Finals Days in four years last season. Back in 2018, they finished as runners up before suffering a semi-final loss at the hands of Kent last year.

Veteran batter Luke Wells thrives in this format of the game with Tymal Mills excelling with the ball. Key performers for Sussex include the brilliant Rashid Khan along with Mohammad Rizwan.

If available the likes of England internationals Joss Buttler, Liam Livingston and James Anderson may be allowed to play some part for Lancashire Lightning. If so, Lightning will be an entertaining joy to watch with Livingston and Buttler both teeing off.

Phil Salt, Hasan Ali and Matt Parkinson are three players that can also play a key role in making Lightning a tough nut to crack.

Defending champions Kent Spitfires are aiming to become the first team in history to claim back-to-back T20 Blast titles.

Matt Milnes was the competition’s second-highest wicket-taker in 2021 with the excellent Daniel Bell-Drummond the third-highest run-scorer.

Both of these players will need to be on top form for the county from the garden of England to create history.

Surrey won the inaugural T20 Blast title back in 2003. Since that historic moment, they have lost three finals, the most recent of which was back in 2020.

On paper, Surrey looks to have one of the strongest squads in the competition with the likes of Chris Jordan, Jason Roy, Tom and Sam Curran along with one of the best IPL players of recent years in Sunil Narine.

Expect Surrey to be challenging for honours in this season’s event, especially if their squad starts firing on all cylinders.

Worcestershire are one of only six sides to have reached back-to-back Blast finals. The Rapids secured silverware in 2018 before losing out to Essex in 2019. The past two seasons the Rapids have been disappointing, having failed to reach the quart-final stages.

However, they do have in their ranks three vastly experienced overseas stars. Dwayne Bravo, Colin Munro and Azhar Ali, who will certainly boost the Rapids’ hunt for silverware.

Yorkshire Vikings remain one of only five sides without a T20 Blast to their name. The Vikings have reached Finals Day in both 2012 and 2016 but have still yet to lift the trophy.

This campaign, Yorkshire have overseas players Haris Rauf, Finn Allen and Shdab Khan alongside T20 specialists David Willey and Adil Rashid which should see Yorkshire be competitive in the competition.

Hampshire Hawks have reached six straight Finals Days between 2010 and 2015, but since then they have only qualified for the semi-finals twice in 2017 and last year.

Big-hitting Captain James Vince will lead the side into another Blast campaign with the help of new addition Ben McDermott.

The Australian big hitter finished the Big Bash League as the leading run-scorer and looks destined to be a success in this season’s event.

Leicestershire Foxes are the only side so far to have won the Blast three times, admittedly between 2004 and 2011.

The Foxes had the leading run-scorer in the Blast last year with Josh Inglis with 531 runs along with the leading wicket tacker in Naveen -ul-Haq with 26 wickets but still failed to qualify for Finals Day.

https://www.prostinternational.com/...an-the-spitfires-make-it-back-to-back-titles/

 

[MenInG]

Five players to watch in the 2022 Vitality Blast

The 2022 Vitality Blast won't be short of talent, with some of the world's best players on show as the original T20 competition celebrates its 20th season.

Jordan Cox

Jordan Cox was the name on everyone’s lips as Kent Spitfires stormed to victory on Vitality Blast Finals Day in 2021. The 21-year-old recovered from a duck in the semi-final against Sussex to be named player-of-the-match in their stunning win over Somerset in the final.

Cox somewhat saved the Spitfires’ innings with a nine-over cameo which saw him build through the gears to end with 58 from just 28 balls to help set Somerset a challenging 168 to win.

But even that excellent innings was cast into the shadows by his exploits on the field and his ‘Air Jordan’ acrobatics on the boundary edge to dismiss Lewis Gregory.

Whilst Cox’s name won’t be found next to the wicket on the scoresheet, his feat of incredible skill produced one of those rare moments that not only goes viral around the cricketing world, but also transcends the sport into general consciousness. The kind of feat that’s almost exclusively been reserved for Ben Stokes in recent years.

He averaged over 50 with the bat in last season’s competition, snagged 10 catches and was generally a menace to opposition batters as he patrolled the square boundaries. Carry on like this and the sky’s the limit for Cox.


Tim David

Rewind 12 months and few people on these shores were familiar with Tim David when Surrey signed him for their final two Vitality Blast games in the midst of an injury crisis at the Kia Oval.

He impressed, stuck around to dominate in the Royal London Cup, got a call-up to the Southern Brave as they won the Hundred and ultimately received a million-dollar contract in the IPL auction.

After a sticky start for the struggling Mumbai Indians, David took the final games of the competition by storm, striking at a ridiculous 216 for the tournament – the highest for any player with more than 65 runs – and scoring 80 runs from just 39 balls across his final two games to silence a few doubters.

Lancashire Lightning are David’s proud new employers for the 2022 Vitality Blast, with the Singapore international adding to an already formidable batting lineup and providing a useful bowling option as well.


Liam Livingstone
Bowlers in the North Group will not be looking forward to their matches against Lancashire this campaign, with Jos Buttler, Tim David and Liam Livingstone in the batting order.

Livingstone, 28, has been the talk of the white-ball world over the past couple of seasons thanks to his fearless assaults on opposition bowlers. The number of highlight reel sixes the Barrow batter has seen fly off his chunk of willow is nothing short of ridiculous.

He scored 437 runs for Punjab Kings – the sixth highest tally in IPL 2022 – at a strike rate of 182. His 34 tournament sixes were second only to Lightning teammate Buttler, and only three players bettered his four scores of fifty-plus.

Now, Livingstone will return to Emirates Old Trafford looking to help drive Lancashire to their first Blast title since 2015, as well as solidifying his form ahead of a crucial white-ball summer for England Men.


Shadab Khan

There will be a few spin-bowling tandems around the Vitality Blast this summer, but arguably none more exciting than Yorkshire Vikings’ leg-spin duo of Adil Rashid and Shadab Khan.

The 23-year-old Pakistan all-rounder joins the Vikings for their first five Blast matches, before returning for the final six group-stage games after international duty.

Despite his relatively young age, Khan has played 188 T20 matches in his impressive career, notching 217 wickets and averaging nearly 20 with the bat.

Khan and Rashid teamed up for four wickets in their first outing together in a warm-up match against a Lancashire 2nd XI on Monday – a tantalising taste of things to come.

Remarkably, Yorkshire have never won the Vitality Blast in the 20 years since its inception. International call-ups may rob them of some of their best talents once again this season but Khan will help bring an extra bit of magic to the Headingley faithful in the coming weeks.


Sam Hain

Sam Hain’s white-ball achievements get a fair amount of attention in the press and social media, but it still feels the Birmingham Bears batter doesn’t really get the recognition he deserves in the shortest format.

Hain is exactly the sort of player every team needs in their lineup – averaging 37 in T20 cricket with a strike rate of nearly 130 – but maybe the fact he doesn’t smash it out the park as much as others around him leaves him a little under the radar. He’s the perfect foil for Bears thrashers like Carlos Brathwaite, Adam Hose and new signing Alex Davies.

North Group rivals Notts Outlaws will be particularly aware of his prowess, with Hain averaging an insane 301 at Trent Bridge.

If Birmingham Bears are to win their first title since 2014, you’d expect Hain to be heavily involved again this year – building his innings and turning the screw in the final overs.

https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/2633734/five-players-to-watch-in-the-2022-vitality-blast

 

[MenInG]

The Vitality Blast kicks off on Wednesday night with a mouth-watering match-up between defending champions Kent and Somerset in a repeat of last year's final - live on Sky Sports Cricket from 6.30pm - and here's our handy guide to the 2022 tournament...

There has been quite the sea change with the England cricket team in 2022, with Matthew Mott the last piece of the puzzle upon his appointment as the new white-ball head coach.

England's ODI and T20 squads have been somewhat of an impenetrable fortress over the last few years as they've gone from hapless 50-over World Cup losers in 2015 to winners on home soil four years later. Looking to add a T20 World Cup to the trophy cabinet in October, can anyone force their way into Mott's plans?

Phil Salt, now with Lancashire, should be near the front of the queue once more. The former Sussex opener forced his way into a much-changed ODI side that whitewashed Pakistan 3-0 last summer after a Covid-19 outbreak.

Durham pace bowler Brydon Carse also impressed and could his fellow county quick Matthew Potts follow a Test call-up with one in the white-ball arena with a good Blast showing?

Harry Brook, similarly, has his eyes firmly set on a batting berth in the Test team right now, but his first opportunity came with a maiden T20I cap in the West Indies earlier this year off the back of a stellar 2021 Blast campaign in which he was the fourth-top scorer with 486 runs at an average of 69.42 for Yorkshire.

Daniel Bell-Drummond was a shade better still than Brook last year, his 492 runs over the tournament making him the leading English batter, and could the Kent connection with England's new managing director of men's cricket, Rob Key, count in his favour?

Is this the year that Tom Banton truly cements a spot in the England white-ball set-up that many assumed would be a given by now after the big-hitter from Somerset burst onto the scene in 2019? Capped 20 times at international level already, Banton averages a disappointing mid-20s in both formats.

Olly Stone and Reece Topley certainly have international pedigree but the fast bowlers will need to convince selectors of their fitness as well as their form in the tournament, with both having repeatedly broken down over the years when seemingly on the cusp of becoming England regulars.

And might there be ways back in at international level for consistent domestic T20 performer Ben Duckett, master of the death-bowling darks arts Pat Brown, and perhaps even Alex Hales?

It does seem as though England have firmly closed the door on the latter, but maybe Mott has other ideas - and a strong Blast showing will only aid his case towards a recall three years on from being axed in the run-up to the 2019 World Cup.

Rashid Khan, the world's best white-ball spinner, is a big draw every year down in Sussex and has helped them qualify for the quarter-finals (minimum) in each of his three seasons with the team - with one run to the final in 2018. Joining the Afghanistan star on the south coast this summer is Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan, who averages over 50 in T20I cricket.

Carlos Brathwaite, remember the name! The burly West Indies batter joins the Birmingham Bears six years on from delivering a six-hitting masterclass to break Ben Stokes and England's hearts in the T20 World Cup final. Joining him at Edgbaston is a man more familiar to Middlesex fans, but Ireland's Paul Stirling will now be blasting the ball to all parts in the Midlands.

There is some more Caribbean flair over the county border as Dwayne Bravo turns out for Worcestershire Rapids, where New Zealand's Colin Munro will also be winding up at the top of the order. His Black Caps team-mate Jimmy Neesham will, meanwhile, be lining up for Northamptonshire.

Pakistan's 19-year-old tearaway fast bowler Naseem Shah promises to provide box office entertainment in his first stint in county cricket with Gloucestershire. Afghanistan quick Naveen-ul-Haq - leading wicket-taker in 2021, with 26 at an average of 17.57 - is back with Leicestershire, with his fellow countrymen and twirlers Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Qais Ahmad turning out for Middlesex and Kent respectively.

West Indian duo Kieron Pollard and Sunil Narine, who are both turning out for Surrey, have reams of T20 experience and can be destructive with the bat and impactful with the ball, while also keep an eye on Lancashire's Singapore international Tim David. His T20 strike-rate is an eye-popping 163.07 from 97 matches, one of the best in the world.

Same as last year with the 18 sides split into separate North and South Groups.

NORTH GROUP: Birmingham Bears, Derbyshire Falcons, Durham, Lancashire Lightning, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Notts Outlaws, Worcestershire Rapids, Yorkshire Vikings

SOUTH GROUP: Essex Eagles, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire Hawks, Kent Spitfires, Middlesex, Somerset, Surrey, Sussex Sharks

Each side plays 14 group games, seven at home and seven away, between May 25 and July 3, with the top four teams in each pool progressing to the quarter-finals in early July.

The winners of the North Group will face the fourth-placed team in the South Group in the quarter-finals and so on and so forth, with the winners of the quarter-finals advancing to Finals Day at Edgbaston on Saturday, July 16.

Who are favourites to make Finals Day?

Notts, for one. The Outlaws won the tournament in 2017 and 2020 and have reached at least the quarter-finals over the last five seasons. Their batting remains as power-packed as ever with the likes of Hales, Duckett, Joe Clarke, and Samit Patel.

2015 champions Lancashire Lightning have also performed well of late, with two semi-final and two quarter-final appearances over the last four campaigns. There will be hope they can take the trophy this time with a batting line-up including Liam Livingstone, Jos Buttler and Tim David, plus Matt Parkinson's leg-spin on the bowling front.

As for contenders in the South Group, Kent Spitfires will be looking to become the first team to successfully defend the Vitality Blast title but the strongest team in that pool may well be Surrey, whose list of star names rolls off the tongue.

Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Jason Roy - if and when he returns from his break from cricket - the Curran brothers, Will Jacks, Reece Topley, Chris Jordan. The Kia Oval side won the inaugural Blast in 2003 and look well set to challenge for the title in his 20th staging.


Vitality Blast: Complete fixture list for 2022

Wednesday, May 25

Kent vs Somerset, Canterbury - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 6.30pm

Friday, May 27

Lancashire vs Yorkshire, Emirates Old Trafford - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 6.30pm

Friday, June 3

Derbyshire vs Nottinghamshire, The Incora County Ground - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 7pm

Saturday, June 4

Hampshire vs Sussex, Ageas Bowl - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 7pm

Wednesday, June 8

Yorkshire vs Lancashire, Headingley - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 6.15pm

Thursday, June 9

Middlesex vs Surrey, Lord's - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 6.15pm

Friday, June 17

Surrey vs Middlesex, Kia Oval - - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 6.15pm

Friday June 24

Birmingham Bears vs Worcestershire, Edgbaston - live on Sky Sports Cricket, 7pm

Quarter-Finals

Wednesday, July 6
Friday, July 8 (x2)
Saturday, July 9

SKY

 

[MenInG]

Teams:

Worcestershire (Playing XI): Ed Pollock, Brett DOliveira, Jack Haynes, Jake Libby, Ben Cox(w/c), Ed Barnard, Gareth Roderick, Josh Baker, Dillon Pennington, Charlie Morris, Patrick Brown

Yorkshire (Playing XI): Adam Lyth, Dawid Malan, Tom Kohler-Cadmore(w), Joe Root(c), Harry Brook, Shadab Khan, Jordan Thompson, Matthew Revis, Dominic Bess, Adil Rashid, Haris Rauf

Worcestershire have won the toss and have opted to bat

 

[silentkiller187]

The Riverside ground in Chester le Street will now be known as Seat Unique Riverside with immediate effect.

 

[MenInG]

Middlesex (Playing XI): Stephen Eskinazi(c), Max Holden, Joe Cracknell, Eoin Morgan, John Simpson(w), Luke Hollman, Chris Green, Martin Andersson, Toby Roland-Jones, Blake Cullen, Thilan Walallawita

Gloucestershire (Playing XI): Miles Hammond, James Bracey(w), Ian Cockbain, Glenn Phillips, Ryan Higgins, Benny Howell, Jack Taylor(c), Tom Smith, Paul van Meekeren, David Payne, Naseem Shah

Gloucestershire have won the toss and have opted to field

 

[MenInG]

Glamorgan have won the toss and have opted to field

Teams:

Sussex (Playing XI): Luke Wright, Mohammad Rizwan(w), Josh Philippe, Ravi Bopara(c), Delray Rawlins, George Garton, Harrison Ward, Will Beer, Tymal Mills, Archie Lenham, Steven Finn

Glamorgan (Playing XI): David Lloyd(c), Sam Northeast, Marnus Labuschagne, Kiran Carlson, Chris Cooke(w), Joe Cooke, Daniel Douthwaite, Michael Neser, James Weighell, Prem Sisodiya, Michael Hogan

 

[James]

The Riverside ground in Chester le Street will now be known as Seat Unique Riverside with immediate effect.

Ugh.
Dreadful!

 

[James]

Rizwan on 28 off 19 for Sussex and batting well.

 

[James]

RESULT

<b>Middlesex v Gloucestershire</b>

First innings
Middlesex 229/9

Second innings
Gloucestershire 199/9

<b>Middlesex won by 30 runs</b>

 

[MenInG]

Results for 26th May

Upcoming games (27th May)

 

[MenInG]

Sussex Cricket is delighted to announce the signing of overseas fast-bowler, Obed McCoy.

McCoy will play for the Sussex Shark’s in this year’s campaign to provide cover for Rashid Khan who will be part of Afghanistan’s tour of Zimbabwe.

He will join up with the team as soon as his Indian Premier League tournament with the Rajasthan Royals concludes and will be available for selection for the games against Middlesex, Hampshire, Surrey and Gloucestershire.

Left-arm seamer McCoy made his T20I debut for the West Indies in 2019 against England and has gone on to play 13 T20I’s, taking 19 wickets at an economy of 7.61.

Speaking on the deal, McCoy said: “I am delighted to be joining Sussex and I am excited to play cricket in the UK for the first time. I am looking forward to getting started and helping the team to win games.”

Sussex’s T20 Head Coach James Kirtley believes the signing of McCoy will be a significant one during the T20 Blast: “Obed will be a fantastic addition to our team. He is an up-and-coming world class T20 cricketer.

“Fresh off a very successful IPL, he can bowl with pace and has great skills at the death. We look forward to welcoming into the Sharks team and look forward to him performing in a crucial period of the campaign.”

 

[MenInG]

14-man Lancashire Lightning squad named for Roses T20 opener

Tim David and Liam Livingstone have both been named in Lancashire Lightning's squad to face Yorkshire Vikings in the Club's Vitality Blast opener at Emirates Old Trafford.

Both David and Livingstone returned from the Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this week and go straight into the 14-man squad which has been named for the Roses T20 on Friday evening.

Powerful batting all-rounder, David, joins Lancashire Lightning following explosive spells at the Pakistan Super League and IPL already this year, with Multan Sultans and Mumbai Indians.

Livingstone, meanwhile, enjoyed a fine debut season with his new franchise Punjab Kings, the all-rounder scoring 437 runs at a blistering strike rate of 182.

Seamer Richard Gleeson is in contention for a first First Team appearance since last August following injury whilst Liam Hurt is included in the squad after his short-term loan at Derbyshire ended.

Phil Salt is also set to make his home Vitality Blast debut for the Club.

https://cricket.lancashirecricket.c...e-lightning-squad-named-for-roses-t20-opener/

 

[James]

Lancs 73/2 off 8.3

 

[James]

Livingstone couple of big sixes and out.
118/3 Lancs

 

[James]

171/6 with 1 over left.

Total looks competitive but chaseable.

 

[James]

Yorks 42/2 off 4.3

Yorkshire need 184 to win

Lancashire bowling

 

[James]

Root gone…

 

[James]

Harry Brook on strike.

 

[MenInG]

 

[MenInG]

 

[MenInG]

Leicestershire have won the toss and have opted to field

Teams:

Derbyshire (Playing XI): Shan Masood(c), Luis Reece, Harry Came, Leus du Plooy, Wayne Madsen, Brooke Guest(w), Matt McKiernan, Hayden Kerr, Mark Watt, Samuel Conners, George Scrimshaw

Leicestershire (Playing XI): Hamish Rutherford, Lewis Hill(w), Arron Lilley, Colin Ackermann(c), Rishi Patel, Scott Steel, Ben Mike, Rehan Ahmed, Roman Walker, Callum Parkinson, Naveen-ul-Haq

 

[MenInG]

 

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[James]

Matches coming thick and fast!

 

[DeadlyVenom]

Suprised Sky aren't showing a live game on a sunday night.

 

[James]

<b>T20 Blast: Leicestershire and Sussex break duck, Middlesex win again in T20 Blast</b>

Leicestershire and Sussex won for the first time this season as they beat Yorkshire and Kent in the T20 Blast.

Rishi Patel (57) and Colin Ackermann (56) shared a stand of 109 as the Foxes made 188-7 and Naveen-ul-Haq took 4-34 as Yorkshire were restricted to 157-9.

Tom Alsop's 65 not out off 30 balls for Sussex left trophy holders Kent a target of 172 at Hove, and their 167-7 in reply meant a third successive loss.

Elsewhere, Middlesex, Lancashire, Birmingham Bears and Somerset also won.

Leicestershire went into their game against Yorkshire at Headingley without a victory in nine previous County Championship and T20 matches this season.

The Foxes were struggling on 51-4 when Ackermann and Patel came together in the eighth over and proceeded to put on 109 - a club record partnership for the fifth wicket in the county game's shortest format.

They both fell to Jordan Thompson (3-34) but Leicestershire's total proved enough for a 31-run victory despite opener Dawid Malan's 50 off 38 balls, with Harry Brook reaching a combined 1,000 runs in both formats this season before he was caught in the deep off Naveen for 29.

The Afghan paceman - T20 Blast 2021's leading wicket-taker with 26 - was well supported by Ben Mike, whose 3-16 included the dismissal of Joe Root, who came down the pitch before slicing a catch to long-off.

Elsewhere in North Group, Tim David's 60 off 25 balls, including four sixes, helped Lancashire Lightning reach 183-7 against Worcestershire Rapids at Old Trafford after Pat Brown(3-35) had reduced them to 54-3.

New Zealander Colin Munro hit 53 off 36 for the visitors, but he was then lbw to fast bowler Richard Gleeson, whose T20 career-best figures of 5-33 led Lancashire to a 12-run win as the Rapids finished on 171-8.

At Edgbaston, Durham - captained by Liam Trevaskis - totalled 158-9 and then, following a rain hold-up, reduced Birmingham Bears to 36-4 in reply.

But Tim Benjamin reached 50 off only 22 balls as he and Adam Hose (29) added 85 in seven overs and was still there at the end on 68 not out as they reached 162-5 with 19 balls to spare.

Kent opted to field first after winning the toss in Hove and despite 43 by opener Luke Wright, Sussex Sharks - who had not won any of their eight previous games this season in either format - were struggling on 102-5 in the 15th over.

Alsop, though, rose to the occasion with three sixes and six fours in his fourth T20 half-century and Kent's reply began badly when England Test opener Zak Crawley gloved a catch to the keeper as he tried to pull a short ball from Steven Finn.

Joe Denly (33) and Sam Billings (31) shared a stand of 60 before both fell to Ravi Bopara, but George Linde's unbeaten 38 was not quite enough at the end as they lost by four runs.

Also in South Group, a second-wicket stand of 102 between Will Smeed and Rilee Rossouw paved the way for Somerset's six-wicket victory over 2019 winners Essex at Taunton.

The Eagles were 7-2 after being asked to bat before Matt Critchley (60 off 38 balls) and Michael Pepper (37) added 76, but that was the high point of a rain-reduced innings which saw them total 139-9 from 18 overs as Marchant de Lange returned impressive figures of 4-9.

Somerset soon lost Tom Banton in reply, but Smeed and Rossouw hammered 12 sixes between them in a record second-wicket stand for the club against Essex.

Smeed reached 50 off 25 balls and his partner soon followed suit off 24 before both departed in the space of three balls - the former caught off Critchley for 58 and Rossouw falling to fellow South African Simon Harmer for 67 after top-edging a slog sweep.

Harmer also removed Tom Abell but the end arrived when two fours by Lewis Gregory carried them past their revised DLS target, reaching 147-4 off 14.4 overs.

Group leaders Middlesex, meanwhile, registered their third successive win as they beat Glamorgan by four wickets at Radlett.

David Lloyd hit the first ball of the game for six, but although Marnus Labuschagne made 38, Toby Roland-Jones claimed 4-22 and Thilan Walallawita 30-18 as the Welsh county were all out for 168 from the final ball of their innings.

Max Holden (41) and Stevie Eskinazi (34) began the chase with 71 in seven overs and although the home side stuttered from 92-1 to 121-4 despite 47 off 28 balls by Joe Cracknell, they reached their target with an over to spare as Roland-Jones found the cover boundary off Michael Hogan to see them to 172-6.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/61625110

 

[James]

<b>Monday fixtures</b>

Trent Bridge: Notts Outlaws v Northamptonshire Steelbacks (18:30)

Ageas Bowl: Hampshire Hawks v Somerset (19:00)


<b>Tuesday fixtures</b>

Trent Bridge: Notts Outlaws v Lancashire Lightning (18:30)

Kia Oval: Surrey v Gloucestershire (18:30)

Headingley: Yorkshire Vikings v Derbyshire Falcons (18:30)

Chelmsford: Essex Eagles v Hampshire Hawks (19:00)

 

[James]

Current points table:—

 

[James]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A phenomenal 102 run partnership between Will Smeed and Rilee Rossouw <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blast22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Blast22</a> <a href="https://t.co/G3GD1llQI8">pic.twitter.com/G3GD1llQI8</a></p>— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) <a href="https://twitter.com/VitalityBlast/status/1530991292691390468?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 29, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

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[MenInG]

Somerset moved to the top of the South Group in the T20 Blast with a four-wicket win over Hampshire Hawks.

The home side were bowled out for 123 at the Ageas Bowl as seamer Josh Davey took 3-21, with James Fuller's 42 off 28 balls the only innings of note.

Fuller then took 2-23 with the ball, but Tom Lammonby's 33 guided Somerset home on 124-6 with 25 balls to spare.

Monday's other match between Notts Outlaws and Northamptonshire Steelbacks ended as a no-result because of rain.

Somerset's only triumph in the domestic T20 competition came in 2005, but last year's beaten finalists were in dominant form in their first two games, beating defending champions Kent Spitfires and Essex Eagles.

They were given an early boost as Aneurin Donald holed out from the first ball of the second over, bowled by Davey, as Hampshire's top order was swept away, leaving them on 57-5 at the halfway point of their innings.

Captain Tom Abell took an excellent over-the-shoulder catch as Hawks skipper James Vince (16) sliced over extra cover, but the best piece of fielding was still to come in the final over as a leaping Lammonby palmed a big hit by Chris Wood to team-mate Will Smeed, who completed the dismissal.

Fuller was the only home batter to pass 20, hitting two big sixes and five fours despite being struck on the shoulder by Marchant de Lange, but eventually fell in the 17th over, top edging a catch to Davey off the South African,

Facing a modest target, Somerset were given a good start by their openers, reaching 46-0 before Tom Banton edged Wood to the keeper at the start of the sixth over.

Smeed followed for 22 and Rilee Rossouw was unable to add another half-century against his former county to previous Blast scores of 81 not out and 67 as he was caught at deep mid-wicket off Brad Wheal for 26.

Abell was bowled by a Mason Crane googly, but Lammonby hit two fours and a six off Wood at the end of the 15th over to leave his side three runs from victory.

He was unable to finish the job as he was caught behind off Nathan Ellis, but Ben Green hit the winning run two balls later as Somerset moved above Middlesex, who also have three wins from three, on net run rate

Notts Outlaws were put in to bat at Trent Bridge following a 30-minute rain delay and despite two sixes by Alex Hales off Tom Taylor, they found themselves in trouble on 38-3 at the end of the six-over powerplay.

Hales was one of those dismissed, caught behind off Ben Sanderson for 15, but the ever-reliable Samit Patel - playing his 353rd T20 game - came to the rescue with a 36-ball half-century.

A six off Graeme White took him past 6,000 runs in T20 cricket as he and Steven Mullaney put on 53 for the fifth wicket.

Both fell in the same Matt Kelly over, Patel caught for 63 off 44 balls and Mullaney edging to the keeper on 15, as the Australian produced figures of 4-29.

The 2017 and 2019 winners were 140-6 at the end of the 18th over, with Dan Christian having just cleared the rope at square leg off White, when the rain returned and there was to be no resumption as umpires Paul Baldwin and Russell Warren abandoned the game.

A point was enough to lift Notts from fifth to second in the North Group, with Northamptonshire also climbing three places to fifth.

Tuesday fixtures

Trent Bridge: Notts Outlaws v Lancashire Lightning (18:30 BST)

The Oval: Surrey v Gloucestershire (18:30)

Headingley: Yorkshire Vikings v Derbyshire Falcons (18:30)

Chelmsford: Essex Eagles v Hampshire Hawks (19:00)

Wednesday fixtures

Old Trafford: Lancashire Lightning v Derbyshire Falcons (15:00)

Chester-le-Street: Durham v Worcestershire Rapids (18:30)

Bristol: Gloucestershire v Kent Spitfires (18:30)

Northampton: Northamptonshire Steelbacks v Leicestershire Foxes (18:30)

Taunton: Somerset v Sussex Sharks (18:30)

BBC

 

[MenInG]

Gloucestershire have won the toss and will bowl first

The Shire are unchanged from the win against Sussex on Friday.

We’ve lost an over due to the rain so it’ll be a 19-over match, but play is due to start at 7:15pm

 

[James]

Sigh.

Late May / early June rain hits again.

It’s been pretty dry since March, until now.

 

[MenInG]

Lancashire Lightning moved second above beaten opponents Notts Outlaws in the T20 Blast North Group, after a dominant 87-run victory at Trent Bridge.

Keaton Jennings (55) top-scored as Lancashire posted a big total of 178-7, before the Outlaws lost five powerplay wickets and never recovered.

England's Sam Curran took four wickets for 14 runs in Surrey's rain-affected 37-run win over Gloucestershire.

There were also wins for Yorkshire and Essex against Derbyshire and Hampshire.

South Group

Surrey beat Gloucestershire after a devastating bowling display from Curran in a game reduced to 16 overs per side after rain at The Oval.

Curran bowled Gloucestershire's top-scorer Ryan Higgins (37) and had New Zealand's Glenn Phillips caught and bowled, while fellow England left-arm seamer Reece Topley took 2-6 from his three overs as the visitors collapsed for 92.

Earlier, openers Will Jacks (51) and Jason Roy (28) gave Surrey a good start before they were bowled out for 129, with Kieron Pollard (14) the only other player to make double figures.

It proved enough to help Surrey go third in the table with two wins from two.

Michael Pepper

Also in the South Group, Essex Eagles thrashed Hampshire Hawks by eight wickets to pick up their first win of the Blast campaign, thanks to a turbo-charged display of batting by Michael Pepper.

Pepper's 75 not out from 42 balls was a thrilling masterclass of strokes, from ramps and reverse sweeps to cuts and outright clubbings, including back-to-back sixes into a block of flats behind the Hayes Close End.

Matt Critchley was his able assistant, with an unbeaten 45 from 24 balls, after Will Buttleman and Adam Rossington went early on.

The Hawks had struggled for runs in their first half of their innings and were 59-3 when opener Ben McDermott fell for 38 in the 11th over.

It was left to Ross Whiteley (23) and Joe Weatherley (37) to steady the ship before the in-form James Fuller hit 24 from 15 balls to guide the visitors to a total of 150-6 that the hosts overhauled with more than six overs to spare, leaving Hampshire without a win from three games.

North Group

Lancashire Lightning arrived at Trent Bridge with the city of Nottingham in party mode following football club Forest's promotion to the Premier League on Sunday.

There was to be no extension of the celebrations across Radcliffe Road though, as Notts Outlaws struggled to make enough headway with ball or bat, and slumped to defeat.

After opener Phil Salt was caught behind early on, Liam Livingstone (30) and Jennings supplied some big hitting before the middle order carried the Lightning to a reasonable score.

Dane Vilas (24) and Steven Croft (22) produced useful knocks, as the Notts bowlers enjoyed some success, with two wickets apiece for Luke Fletcher, Jake Ball and Dane Paterson.

But Notts failed to gain any advantage from the powerplay overs, losing four wickets from the opening two to slide to 11-4 - with Ben Duckett, Samit Patel and skipper Steven Mullaney all gone in three balls - the latter run out.

From there, Lancashire removed the big-hitting Alex Hales (15) before he could cause too much damage, and it was left to Luke Fletcher to top score with 21 before he was caught by Croft for Livingstone's third wicket.

The visitors were bowled out for 91, barely halfway to their target.

Rain limited Yorkshire Vikings and Derbyshire Falcons to an eight-over game at Headingley, with the visitors winning by nine wickets in the last over to go third behind Lancashire.

England's Dawid Malan helped set the platform with a half-century for Yorkshire, after Adam Lyth and Shadab Khan made just one run between them.

David Willey and Will Fraine carried the hosts to 83-3 in their restricted overs, but Derbyshire chased it down with three balls to spare.

Luis Reece was run out in the second over for six, but skipper Shan Masood (32 not out) and Wayne Madsen (39 not out) held their nerve under pressure to secure the points.


BBC

 

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[James]

Tonight’s results:




Updated tables:

 

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Many thanks to [MENTION=1842]James[/MENTION] for these pictures from Headingley (Yorkshire vs Nottinghamshire)

 

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[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">David Willey and Harry Brook are getting <a href="https://twitter.com/YorkshireCCC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@YorkshireCCC</a> going &#55357;&#56983; <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blast22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Blast22</a> LIVE STREAM: <a href="https://t.co/XytNFjy1uh">https://t.co/XytNFjy1uh</a> <a href="https://t.co/vHCdPxYhYv">pic.twitter.com/vHCdPxYhYv</a></p>— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) <a href="https://twitter.com/VitalityBlast/status/1533872541298827264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[BunnyRabbit]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">David Willey and Harry Brook are getting <a href="https://twitter.com/YorkshireCCC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@YorkshireCCC</a> going �� <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blast22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Blast22</a> LIVE STREAM: <a href="https://t.co/XytNFjy1uh">https://t.co/XytNFjy1uh</a> <a href="https://t.co/vHCdPxYhYv">pic.twitter.com/vHCdPxYhYv</a></p>— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) <a href="https://twitter.com/VitalityBlast/status/1533872541298827264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 6, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Yorkshire team this year is strong enough to compete with and beat any franchise team in the world.

 

[BunnyRabbit]

Been a fan of Somerset since 2005. Havent seen them win the tournament since that edition.

 

[Saj]

Yorkshire Vikings beat Notts in the T20 Blast for the first time since 2017 to move up to third place in North Group.

Harry Brook (40 off 25 balls) and David Willey shared a stand of 76 and Jonny Tattersall's unbeaten 48 guided the home side to 202-5 from their 20 overs.

Willey then bowled Alex Hales with the second ball of the Outlaws' reply.

Notts were 50-5 before Steven Mullaney (79) and Dan Christian (56) added 114, but Dominic Drakes took 3-31 as they ended on 179-7 to lose by 23 runs.

Yorkshire's previous Blast win over Notts was also at Headingley in July 2017 - the Outlaws had come out on top in six out of eight meetings since then, with the other two matches abandoned.

They were given a racing start by openers Adam Lyth (20) and Finn Allen (16) before Brook and Willey took over to continue pushing the score along at more than 10 runs per over, with the help of five sixes between them.

Willey was eventually caught at long-off for 34 from the bowling of spinner Calvin Harrison to leave Yorkshire 119-3 and Brook was bowled in the next over as he tried to cut a ball from Samit Patel which was too full of length.

There was then a lull in the scoring, with only 19 runs added in overs 13 to 15, but Tattersall and Will Fraine (19) put on 65 to help push the total beyond 200 - with the former hitting two sixes and two fours in his 30-ball knock.

A target of 203 was well within the capabilities of the powerful Outlaws batting line-up but Willey produced a beauty which cut back in off the pitch to clean up Hales for a duck.

Drakes then removed Joe Clarke and Patel with successive deliveries and Ben Duckett followed for 15, caught behind from a skier off Matthew Revis.

Adil Rashid picked up the fifth wicket as Tom Moores top edged as he tried to sweep a full toss, but with Mullaney and Christian together, Notts still had hope.

Both reached 50 off 31 balls but Mullaney was eventually caught at deep extra cover off Jordan Thompson and when left-arm paceman Drakes bowled Christian behind his legs in the 19th over with 37 still needed, the game was effectively over.

Yorkshire are next in Roses match action against group leaders Lancashire Lightning at Headingley on Wednesday, with the Outlaws - who remain sixth - away to Leicestershire Foxes on Friday evening.

 

[James]

Great win for Yorkshire tonight!

Dominated large passages of the game in a stellar team performance.

Was a privilege to witness the action live at Headingley.

 

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[James]

Tonight’s results.

 

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[James]

An incredible finish at Headingley — as ever!

 

[James]

Wins for Bears, Surrey, and Lancs.

 

[James]

Tonight’s results.

 

[MenInG]

 

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The most sixes EVER in a <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RosesT20?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RosesT20</a> match! &#55357;&#56908; <br><br>Who played the best of them?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blast22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Blast22</a> <a href="https://t.co/IAYfa4MBFD">pic.twitter.com/IAYfa4MBFD</a></p>— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) <a href="https://twitter.com/VitalityBlast/status/1534928332348870658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 9, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[silentkiller187]

 

[silentkiller187]

 

[MenInG]

 

[MenInG]

Brook, Overton and Parkinson have been released from the England camp to play county cricket.

They will play for their respective county tonight in the Vitality Blast and the next round of the LV= Insurance County Championship starting on Sunday.

Brook

Vitality Blast, Birmingham Bears v Yorkshire Vikings, Edgbaston, tonight

LV= County Championship Division One, Hampshire v Yorkshire, Ageas Bowl, 12-15 June

Overton

Vitality Blast, Somerset v Kent Spitfires, The Cooper Associates County Ground, Taunton, tonight

LV= County Championship Division One, Somerset v Surrey, The Cooper Associates County Ground, Taunton, 12-15 June

Parkinson

Vitality Blast, Durham v Lancashire Lightning, Seat Unique Riverside, Chester-le-Street, tonight

LV= County Championship Division One, Warwickshire v Lancashire, Edgbaston, Birmingham, 12-15 June

 

[James]

Tonight’s results!

 

[James]

Up to date tables.

 

[MenInG]

Today's games

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Today's games

Ah the old days when these were called 'matches' and not 'games'. Nostalgia

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">&#55357;&#57000; THE HIGHEST EVER BLAST SCORE &#55357;&#57000; <br><br>&#55357;&#56613;&#55357;&#56613;&#55357;&#56613;&#55357;&#56613;&#55357;&#56613;<br><br>Birmingham Bears score <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Blast22?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Blast22</a> <a href="https://t.co/TOnAAzL2d6">pic.twitter.com/TOnAAzL2d6</a></p>— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) <a href="https://twitter.com/VitalityBlast/status/1537880810774179843?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 17, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[James]

Tonight’s results:






Updated tables:

 

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[James]

Yorks bowled out for 175.

Three wickets in the final over.

Looks chaseable this.