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Men’s Vitality Blast Preview: Kent Spitfires v Somerset

THE MATCHES

Somerset take on Kent Spitfires in the Vitality Blast at the Spitfire Ground, Canterbury tomorrow, Friday July 11th.

Play is due to get underway at 6:30pm.

Tickets for this match are still available:

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Somerset are currently top of the South Group with 36 points from 11 matches whilst Kent Spitfires are sixth with 22 points from the same number of fixtures.

HOW CAN I KEEP UP TO DATE?

You can keep up to date using the dedicated Match Centre on this website which will feature a live stream of the action courtesy of Kent Spitfires CCC.

MATCH CENTRE

In-play updates will also appear on our X feed (formerly Twitter).

In addition to this, a report on the day’s play along with quotes will be posted on this website.

THE OPPOSITION

KENT SPITFIRES

Captain: Sam Billings

Overseas players: Wes Agar (Australia, all group matches) Tom Rogers (Australia, all group matches)

Finals Day appearances: Four (2007, 2008, 2009, 2021)

Titles: Two (2007, 2021)

2024 finish: Ninth (South Group)

2024 leading runscorer: Sam Billings (411)

2024 leading wicket taker: Matt Parkinson (16)

Key winter moves: Rogers was an emergency signing last year and enjoyed himself so much he said he’d come back for free (although he is being paid). Agar was only supposed to play red-ball cricket last year but did enough as emergency cover to earn a multi-format deal. Chris Benjamin’s arrival from Bears should add some firepower.

The big question: Will the return of Fred Klaassen galvanise a bowling unit that was badly exposed last year? The Dutch international missed most of 2023 and all of 2024. Inexperienced replacements were severely punished for the slightest lapses in length, line or both, but Klaassen offers both a wicket-taking threat and a level of discipline and control severely lacking last season.

Wildcard watch: Daniel Bell-Drummond. The stylish right-hander is without a The Hundred team after previous stints at London Spirit and Birmingham Phoenix. He’s a safe bet for any team looking for top-order hitting with more than 4,000 Vitality Blast runs to his name at a strike rate close to 140, while he enjoyed a profitable 2024 with 373 runs which included three half-centuries.

Final thought: Does any side blow as hot and cold as Kent have done in the last few seasons? They won the Blast in 2021, finished bottom of the South Group in 2022, were unlucky not to reach the quarter-finals in 2023 and struggled again in 2024. If this pattern continues they should be due a good season, and seven of the 2021 champions (Crawley, Bell-Drummond, Joe Denly, Billings, Leaning, Stewart and Klaassen) remain at the club.

TEAM NEWS

Matt Henry’s spell with the Club has come to an end but Jake Ball and Miguel Pretorius come into the squad:

VIEWS FROM THE DRESSING ROOM

Ahead of the match, Somerset Head Coach, Jason Kerr said: “Although we’ve qualified for the quarter finals it’s important that we keep winning. We’re playing well at the moment and we go to Canterbury full of confidence. We had a frustrating performance against them at home earlier in the tournament and we want to put that right.

“There’s still a huge amount to play for because we want to secure a home quarter final. The game against Essex was almost the perfect performance, but there are still areas where we need to improve and we’ll be looking to do that for the remainder of the competition.

“Matt Henry is a world class performer but we are able to call on the likes of Migael Pretorius and Jake Ball who both have a lot of experience and are outstanding players.”

TRADE NATION STATS

Somerset have scored a total of 1508 sixes in the Blast.

This is over 100 more than any other team!

CLASSIC MATCH

We go back to 2021 for the classic T20 match between the two sides at Canterbury.

It was a game that Somerset won by 10 wickets thanks to a stunning century from Tom Banton.

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

If you are planning to attend the match, all the information you need can be found on the official Kent CCC Website.

KENT CCC

NEXT MATCH

Somerset’s next match will see us take on Surrey at the Kia Oval in the Vitality Blast on Sunday (July 13th).

Tickets for this match are still available.

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