Kent miss last-eight spot with slender defeat to frontrunners Somerset
Somerset 221 for 7 (Smeed 61, Stewart 4-48) beat Kent 206 for six (Evison 46, Gregory 2-33) by 15 runs
Kent Spitfires’ hopes of grabbing the final quarter-final place within the Vitality Blast have been dashed by the Somerset juggernaut because the runaway South Group winners pulled off a 15-run win at Taunton.
Will Smeed led a typical assault by the house aspect after dropping the toss, smashing 61 off 28 balls, whereas Sean Dickson (41), Tom Kohler-Cadmore (31) and Lewis Gregory (37) made vital contributions to a rating of 221 for 7. Grant Stewart claimed 4 for 48, however left-arm spinner George Linde was the choose of the Kent bowlers with 2 for 25.
In reply, the Spitfires, trying to overtake Essex within the desk, posted 206 for 7, Joey Evison cracking 46 off 24 balls, Jack Leaning 41 and skipper Sam Billings 36. It was Somerset’s twelfth victory in 14 group matches, a document for the competitors.
Despite claiming the early wicket of Tom Banton, caught and bowled off a waist-high Stewart full toss, the guests have been unable to forestall Somerset scoring 63 off the preliminary six-over powerplay. Smeed was quickly benefiting from a real batting pitch with a brief boundary in town aspect of the bottom. He and Kohler-Cadmore responded to the lack of Banton with a string of sweetly-struck boundaries.
Both cleared the ropes within the energy play and had taken the rating to 72 within the eighth over when Kohler-Cadmore was caught at long-on off Stewart, having confronted simply 18 balls.
Smeed went previous 2000 T20 runs along with his fourth six, launched over cowl off Stewart, earlier than going to a 23-ball fifty that delighted a packed crowd on the Cooper Associates County Ground.
Another exhilarating combination of muscular blows and deft touches ended when 21-year-old Smeed swept a ball from Linde and was caught at deep backward sq., with the full 103 within the tenth over.
Tom Abell additionally fell to a sweep shot off Linde, Jordan Cox taking an excellent diving catch. But Dickson ensured there was no slowing of the scoring charge, hitting three sixes and two fours in a stand of 47 in lower than 5 overs with Gregory. The former Kent participant was ultimately caught behind off what would have been a large from Stewart, however Gregory’s 19-ball innings assured Somerset a difficult complete.
Kent’s hopes of chasing it down suffered an early blow when opener Tawanda Muyeye, already dropped by Dickson at deep midwicket, hit a six off Matt Henry’s first ball of the second over earlier than lifting a catch to mid-on off the following supply.
Alex Blake threatened briefly, smashing a giant six off Henry in racing to 24 off simply 10 balls earlier than being run out backing up because the New Zealand seamer fingertipped a drive from Billings onto the stumps.
Billings started watchfully, however cleared the ropes for the primary day without work Ben Green within the seventh over, fetching a ball from exterior off stump and dispatching it over deep sq.. The Spitfires had ended the powerplay on 63 for 3, nonetheless within the sport.
Billings greeted the introduction of legspinner Ish Sodhi with a six over long-on and was warming to his process with successive boundaries off Gregory earlier than Somerset’s captain struck again by bowling him with the final ball of the ninth over. Leaning responded with a six over deep sq. off Overton and adopted up with a 4 to third-man as 17 got here off the eleventh over.
Experienced New Zealander Sodhi had Linde caught at long-off and Kent required 103 from the final eight. Some defiant blows from Leaning and Evison diminished the goal to 69 from 5.
Evison then hit Green for six as 16 got here off the sixteenth over. Leaning adopted up by clearing the ropes off Davey, however when he fell to Gregory two overs later, having confronted 30 balls, Somerset regained management and Evison’s spectacular effort ended when he was caught off Henry to kill off Kent hopes.