Match Report: Gloucestershire vs. Kent Spitfires
Kent Spitfires suffered their second defeat of this season’s Vitality Blast after being bested by eight-wickets against Gloucestershire at Bristol.
Gloucestershire successfully chased down 148 to give Kent their second loss of the campaign, with the visitors still sitting top of the South Group at the end of play.
Miles Hammond gave the chase an impressive start, striking the first two balls over cover for four and then the first two of the fourth for six over square leg. But he miscued another pull and was caught for 33, his best return in the tournament so far.
Chris Dent also swung a mighty six over deep square in the second over and lifted four more over mid-on before helping take 21 from the final over of the Powerplay, giving Gloucestershire a score of 75 for one after six overs.
Dent fell for 37 in 21 balls before Glenn Phillips saw his side home with an unbeaten 41 from 25 balls.
Kent, having been sent in, were given a bright start with Zak Crawley’s 43 from 29 balls. He flicked Dan Worrall over midwicket for six in the opening over and clubbed another maximum, also mistimed, in the fifth over.
He targeted the short leg-side boundary again off Benny Howell for a third six before a top-edge, on 34, landed between two converging fielders. He survived to strike Tom Smith down the ground for four but top-edged a sweep to Worrall at deep square.
Crawley dominated the opening 10 overs where Kent made 74 for three. Daniel Bell-Drummond tried to paddle-sweep Josh Shaw and lost his middle-and-off stumps for 11 and Joe Denly, becalmed on five from nine balls, slapped Howell straight to extra-cover.
Jordan Cox played a most-necessary late hand with 36 in 28 balls, including scooping Worrall over deep-square for six, but the target proved well short.
After the match, Kent’s Zak Crawley said: “They played really well to be fair to them and showed us how to play on this type of wicket.
“In the southern group you get a lot of good wickets but this was a bit slow and we have to be a bit better on this type of wicket.”
NEXT HOME MATCH
Kent Spitfires will look to avenge defeat at Taunton with the visit of Somerset to The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence on Monday 28 June (19:00 start).
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