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Defeat for Somerset Women at Surrey
Alice Monaghan’s maiden T20 half-century was the catalyst for Surrey’s 68-run win over Somerset to all-but clinch top spot in the qualifying table.
The Hampshire academy graduate, who missed part of the season with a broken finger struck four sixes in her 57 (32), sharing a stand of 85 for the fifth wicket with Emma Jones (34) in Surrey’s imposing 175-6. Chloe Skelton and Erin Vukusic took two wickets apiece for Somerset.
In the face of a good fielding display in which Alice Capsey and Kalea Moore both took good catches, Somerset struggled to keep up with the required rate and were bowled out for 107, Dani Gregory finishing with four for 13.
Skipper Bryony Smith struck three early boundaries only for Alex Griffiths to cut her surge short with a superb diving catch on the mid-wicket fence.
Kira Chathli had her leg-stump uprooted by Vukusic without scoring and after a typically aggressive start, Grace Harris was squared up by one which kept low and was lbw to Mollie Robins, meaning Surrey lost three wickets in the powerplay.
Capsey, who’d been promoted to open, looked in ominous form, a lovely straight drive off Olivia Barnes the pick of her four boundaries, but she lost strike at a key time before becoming Skelton’s second victim.
At 68 for four Surrey were wobbling, but Monaghan played a great hand, twice striking Amanda-Jade Wellington for six, while her other two maximums went over mid-on and onto the rope behind square.
Another of the host’s big-hitters Emma Jones struggled at first before clearing the ropes on her way to 34. Phoebe Franklin weighed in with an enterprising cameo meaning Somerset would need their biggest score of the tournament to win.
Bex Odgers gave the innings early impetus before cutting Moore to short third. Davis lapped Ryana MacDonald-Gay for four, but the England ODI seamer’s retort was to spread-eagle her stumps later in the over.
Niamh Holland survived a run out chance when stranded halfway down the pitch to club successive fours from MacDonald-Gay’s next over, but she too couldn’t go on, losing her middle-stump to Gregory’s first ball.
By now the rate required was above 10 and Moore returned to turn the screw a little tighter with the wicket of Fran Wilson caught in the deep by Jones.
The home side’s fielding backed up the bowlers, Harris twice saving boundaries with last-ditch dives, making it all the harder for Somerset to build any momentum.
Moore’s superb catch cut short England all-rounder Dani Gibson’s Somerset debut and Capsey produced an even better one at full stretch to remove Wellington as the visitors fell away.
After the match, Wellington said: “Surrey are a strong side. I’m pretty proud of the way we bowled in the powerplay where we contained them really well. I thought Monaghan batted really well with Jones at the back end, but we were happy with their score which we thought was gettable on a wicket like this.
“We didn’t put up a fight with the bat and it is pretty disappointing. If we’d got one or two partnerships at even a run a ball we could have stayed in the fight a little bit longer. In T20 cricket if you have one big over of around the 20-mark you are in with a chance, but we never really got that big over to continue the chase hard.”
