Match Preview – Sussex Sharks v Kent Spitfires – Friday 11th July

Kent Spitfires travel down to the South Coast on Friday evening to take on the Sussex Sharks as the NatWest T20 Blast qualifying campaign enters its final stages.

With four games to play, the Spitfires need to collect the points if they are to have any hopes of sealing a place in the quarter-finals.

Rob Key’s side currently sit eighth in the South Group, four points behind fourth placed Glamorgan, having taken seven points from ten games. The Sharks are also desperate for a win if they are to reach the final eight, with the Hove outfit just one point and one place above Kent.

Head Coach Jimmy Adams says the players go into the game full of confidence, following their Championship win over Leicestershire on Thursday afternoon: "I'm very happy for the lads who worked very hard for the win. It was a great team performance that had some good individual performances from Mitch Claydon and Darren Stevens with the ball and Sam Northeast, Claydon, Daniel Bell-Drummond and Brendan Nash with the bat. I hope we will now take our recent momentum into Friday evening's T20 under the lights down in Sussex."

When the two sides met at the Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence in T20 action, last month, it was the visitors who ran out winners in a low-scoring encounter. A strong, collective bowling display helped the Spitfires restrict the Sharks to 149-8 with Doug Bollinger and James Tredwell grabbing two wickets apiece. The Sussex innings was underpinned by England’s Luke Wright, who smashed a typically quick-fire 85 from 61 balls.

The reachable target got off to a disappointing start when the in-from Key was bowled by Lewis Hatchett in the opening over and his side never really recovered. Sam Billings top-scored with 23 but the hosts never really looked in the hunt as Steffan Piolet (3-14) helped bowl them out for 114 with the South Coast side taking the points.

Kent have named a 13-man squad for the trip to Sussex: Rob Key (c), Adam Ball, Daniel Bell-Drummond, Sam Billings (w), Alex Blake, Mitch Claydon, Fabian Cowdrey, Charlie Hartley, Ben Harmison, Sam Northeast, Adam Riley, Darren Stevens, James Tredwell

Play is due to begin at 7pm at the BrightonandHoveJobs.com County Ground, Hove on Friday, 11th July 2014.