Match Report: Somerset vs. Kent Spitfires
Kent Spitfires fell to their first defeat of the 2021 Vitality Blast against Somerset at The Cooper Associates County Ground, Taunton.
Having been 53 for three, the hosts did well to post 204 for seven, Tom Abell leading the way with 68 off 33 balls and 20-year-old Lewis Goldsworthy making 48. Kent’s Grant Stewart claimed a new career-best three for 33.
Despite an impressive 48 off 23 deliveries from Zak Crawley, Kent were bowled out for 157 in the 18th over, Marchant de Lange finishing with three for 18.
Tom Banton’s disappointing start to the Blast continued after Somerset had been invited to bat, the opener caught at deep square off Stewart for nine with the score on 33 in the fourth over.
Will Smeed followed in the next over and when James Hildreth was caught at long-off for 27 to give Joe Denly a wicket, Somerset looked to be heading for their third below-par total in three Blast games.
Abell had other ideas, reverse sweeping Qais Ahmad for successive fours in the ninth over before unleashing sixes off Ahmad and Darren Stevens as the scoring rate accelerated.
With Goldsworthy lending excellent support, Abell moved to his second Blast fifty of the season off 26 balls, with 5 fours and 2 sixes.
He claimed another maximum off Stewart over deep square before falling in the same over, having added 90 with Goldsworthy off 45 balls.
Goldsworthy hit Fred Klaassen for a straight six before Stewart had him caught at deep cover. He had faced 29 balls and hit 6 fours.
Kent’s reply got off to a bad start when the fourth ball saw Daniel Bell-Drummond caught at backward point off Craig Overton.
Joe Denly fell to Josh Davey with the score on 14, but Zak Crawley collected 2 sixes off Overton in the fifth over and the powerplay finished with the Spitfires 56 for two.
Goldsworthy’s left-arm spin was greeted with a four and a six by Crawley as he and Sam Billings brought up a fifty stand in 27 balls. But the latter fell to a catch at wide long-on in the same over.
Leg-spinner Max Waller bowled Crawley in his first over and followed up by having Jack Leaning stumped as Kent reached halfway at 89 for five.
With Goldsworthy recovering from conceding ten off his first two overs, Somerset controlled the middle of the innings. The youngster had figures of one for 30 at the end of his four-over stint.
Darren Stevens, Stewart and Qais Ahmad all fell cheaply and Jordan Cox’s battling 33 wasn’t enough to prevent a Somerset win.
After his side’s first Blast defeat, Kent’s Grant Stewart said: “I suppose it is in the nature of T20 that no team are at their best every game.
“While we considered 180 a par score here, we fancied our batting line-up at the halfway stage, even chasing over 200.
“I was pleased to take some wickets and Zak Crawley was awesome with the bat, but overall it was a disappointing evening for us. We just have to regroup and come back stronger tomorrow against Glamorgan.”
NEXT HOME MATCH
Essex Eagles travel to The Spitfire Ground, St Lawrence to contest the latest chapter of the ‘Battle of the Bridge’ saga on Father’s Day, Sunday 20 June (14:30 start).
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