Kent Spitfires v Gloucestershire (Sun, 3pm)
South Group leaders Kent Spitfires entertain third-placed Gloucestershire at The Spitfire Ground for Sunday’s family T20 at 3pm.
Bouncy castle, balloon sculpting and cricket activities will be available for children to enjoy on a scorching summer’s afternoon.
Book tickets for Sunday’s match to save on gate prices >
A superb bowling display dismantled Hampshire for 88 on Friday and the hosts will be hoping for the same at Canterbury.
Kent could opt to rotate the bowling attack for their third match in four days with Mitch Claydon, Harry Podmore and Grant Stewart waiting in the wings.
All-rounder Joe Denly is the joint leading wicket-taker in the South Group with 13 wickets and an economy rate under eight.
Skipper Sam Billings is second to Surrey’s Adam Finch in the group batting averages but has the most dismissals of any wicketkeeper so far (nine – seven catches and two stumpings).
Gloucestershire possess an attacking line-up led by veteran Australian opener Michael Klinger who holds the record for the most English domestic T20 centuries (6) and a string of destructive hitters.
Jack Taylor has the highest strike rate (222 per 100 balls) of any batsman to score 100 or more runs in the competition.
Off-spinner George Drissell replaces left-armer Tom Smith from the squad selected for the two-run defeat at Glamorgan.
Gates open at 1pm. Parking available at Simon Langton Girls Grammar (CT1 3EW) and New Dover Road Park and Ride (CT1 3EJ).
Kent Spitfires squad: 7 Sam Billings (c/wk), 23 Daniel Bell-Drummond, 10 Alex Blake, 6 Joe Denly, 58 Sean Dickson, 25 Calum Haggett, 4 Heino Kuhn, 20 Adam Milne, 1 Harry Podmore, 11 Imran Qayyum, 9 Grant Stewart, 17 Marcus Stoinis, 5 Ivan Thomas, 8 Mitch Claydon.
Gloucestershire squad: Klinger (c), Hammond, Cockbain, Howell, Noema-Barnett, Higgins, J.Taylor, Roderick, Tye, Drissell, Payne, Dent, van Buuren, M. Taylor.
See the Spitfires at The Spitfire Ground this Sunday (5 August) against Gloucestershire and at The County Ground, Beckenham next Sunday (12 August) against Middlesex. Both matches start at 3pm with gates opening at 1pm.
Book tickets for Sunday’s match to save on gate prices >
Stat attack
- Alex Blake has played 100 T20 matches for Kent and is the fourth to reach the landmark after Darren Stevens (158), James Tredwell (142) and Joe Denly (116).
- Adam Milne has taken 26 wickets for Kent in T20s at an average of 12.8 with a strike rate of 11.2 and an economy rate of 6.8 (the lowest rates of any bowler who has taken 20+ wickets for the county)
- Marcus Stoinis is the 15th bowler to claim a four-wicket haul, only four have claimed multiple (Stevens, Milne, Coles, Yasir Arafat)
- Sam Billings and Marcus Stoinis shared Kent’s highest fourth wicket partnership in T20 cricket: 106 against Essex at The Spitfire Ground on Thursday
- The record stand was the 20th T20 century partnership in the club’s history and the third of the season (Denly/Kuhn at The Oval and Bell-Drummond/Kuhn at Taunton were the others)
- The most T20 century stands came in 2015 when the Spitfires shared three-figure partnerships on four occasions
- Kent’s record stand v Gloucestershire is 135 shared by Joe Denly and Azhar Mahmood at Beckenham in 2011
See the Spitfires at The Spitfire Ground this Sunday (5 August) against Gloucestershire and at The County Ground, Beckenham next Sunday (12 August) against Middlesex. Both matches start at 3pm with gates opening at 1pm.