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Somerset back to winning ways against Hampshire Hawks
A Club T20 record seventh wicket stand of 82 between Lewis Gregory and Lewis Goldsworthy helped to ensure that Somerset returned to winning ways in the Vitality Blast as they came out on top against Hampshire Hawks at the Cooper Associates County Ground.
Following the recent defeat to Kent Spitfires, Somerset were keen to bounce back and that’s exactly what they did in front of another big crowd in Taunton.
As the words to ‘Blackbird’ emanated victoriously from the Somerset dressing room for the sixth time in seven matches in this season’s competition, the team from Taunton returned to the top of the table courtesy of a 17-run win.
Hampshire skipper, James Vince won the toss and elected to field.
Somerset suffered an early blow when Tom Banton (4) was removed by Eddie Jack in the second over of the match courtesy of a brilliant diving catch on the run from Joe Weatherley on square leg boundary with just 11 runs on the board.
The Somerset 50 arrived in the fifth over, with the 50 partnership between Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Will Smeed arriving shortly thereafter from just 23 balls.
By the end of the six-over powerplay, the hosts had reached 68 for one.
With the score on 70, Kohler-Cadmore, who passed 6000 career T20 runs during his time at the crease tonight, departed for 29 (from 15), bowled by James Fuller.
Will Smeed bludgeoned his way to 50 from only 28 deliveries and at the halfway stage, the home side had reached 101 for two.
The 11th over summed up the excitement and jeopardy of T20 cricket.
Somerset plundered 15 runs from Jack but Smeed, who smashed two big sixes during the over, departed for 68 (from only 37 deliveries) when he was caught on the boundary by Scott Currie.
116 for three became 116 for four when Tom Abell dragged a slower one from Benny Howell onto his own stumps to depart for 10, and when Sean Disckon (3) was bowled by Liam Dawson, Somerset were 122 for five in the 13th over.
Ben Green (4) looked to attack the Hampshire bowlers and tried to go big in the 14th over. Unfortunately, he didn’t go quite big enough and picked out Jack at long on to give Howell his second scalp at 127 for six.
Lewis Gregory brought up the Somerset 150 in the 17th over with an absolutely enormous maximum off Chris Wood which was still rising as it soared over the Lord Botham Stand on it’s way into the River Tone. He repeated the feat off the final ball of the over which was a costly one for the visitors as 25 runs came from it.
The 50 partnership between Gregory and Lewis Goldsworthy was brought up from just 25 balls and the that was the same number of deliveries that it took the Somerset Captain to reach his own half century.
Gregory was run out for 55 off the last ball of the innings as Somerset closed on 209 for seven. Goldsworthy remained not out on 29 (from 16). Their seventh wicket stand beat the previous best of 67 between Omari Banks and Ben Phillips at Northants in 2008.
The Hampshire reply started solidly enough with Vince and Lhuan-dre Pretorius reaching 50 in the sixth over and ending the powerplay on 56 without loss.
Ben Green eventually made the breakthrough in the ninth over with the score on 74 when Pretorius (37) picked out Abell on the boundary in front of the Trade Nation Stand.
Vince and Toby Albert took the total to 95 in the 12th over before the latter departed for 10 courtesy of a brilliant diving catch from Kohler-Cadmore in front of Gimblett’s Hill off the bowling of Goldsworthy.
Vince went to his half century in the 13th over with a six off Green but fell to the next delivery thanks to a superb catch from Overton running in from long off. The visiting skipper departing for 54 from 30 deliveries.
The score had advanced to 135 when Weatherley was run out in bizarre fashion off the final ball of the 15th over. He was wrapped on the pads, started to run but thought better of it but didn’t return to his crease. That gave the Somerset seamer time to pick up the ball and throw down the stumps.
Meredith wasn’t finished and in his next over, the 17th, he bowled Fuller (11) with an absolute beauty with the score on 154. The 87 mph yorker was simply too good for the Hampshire batter.
Dewald Brevis had raced to 36 from 16 deliveries but he skied Green to Gregory on the edge of the ring at 170 for six in the 18th.
29 were needed from the final over, bowled by Gregory, and the miserly Somerset skipper ensured that his side returned to winning ways.
