The Kent Spitfires’ dreams of securing the final quarter-final spot in the Vitality Blast were shattered by a dominant Somerset team, who emerged victorious with a 15-run win at Taunton.
Despite losing the toss, Somerset’s batting assault was relentless, led by the explosive Will Smeed, who bludgeoned 61 runs off just 28 deliveries. Supported by valuable contributions from Sean Dickson (41), Tom Kohler-Cadmore (31), and Lewis Gregory (37), Somerset posted a formidable total of 221 for 7. Grant Stewart managed to take 4 wickets for Kent, but it was left-arm spinner George Linde who stood out with figures of 2 for 25.
In response, the Kent Spitfires, eager to climb above Essex in the standings, fought back with a total of 206 for 7. Joey Evison’s quickfire 46 off 24 balls, along with Jack Leaning’s 41 and skipper Sam Billings’ 36, kept the chase alive. Somerset’s victory marked their 12th win out of 14 group matches, setting a new record for the competition.
Despite claiming an early wicket with the dismissal of Tom Banton, caught and bowled by Grant Stewart’s waist-high full toss, Kent struggled to contain Somerset’s explosive start. The Somerset batsmen capitalized on a true batting pitch and a short boundary, with Smeed and Kohler-Cadmore hitting a flurry of boundaries after Banton’s departure.
Both batsmen cleared the ropes during the powerplay and had amassed 72 runs by the eighth over before Kohler-Cadmore was caught at long-on off Stewart’s bowling, having faced just 18 balls.
Smeed, on the other hand, reached a milestone of 2000 T20 runs, smashing his fourth six over cover off Stewart and completing a blazing fifty off just 23 balls, much to the delight of the enthusiastic crowd at the Cooper Associates County Ground.
Smeed’s exhilarating innings came to an end when he was caught at deep backward square, attempting a sweep shot off Linde’s bowling. His departure saw Somerset reach a total of 103 runs in just the tenth over.
Tom Abell also fell victim to Linde’s spin, with Jordan Cox taking a spectacular diving catch. However, Dickson ensured Somerset’s scoring rate didn’t falter, smashing three sixes and two fours in a quick stand of 47 runs with Gregory. The former Kent player was eventually caught behind off a delivery that would have been called a wide from Stewart, but Gregory’s 19-ball cameo ensured Somerset posted a challenging total.
Kent’s pursuit of the target suffered an early setback when opener Tawanda Muyeye, who had already been dropped by Dickson, hit a six off the first ball of the second over before miscuing a catch to mid-on.
Alex Blake provided a brief glimmer of hope, striking a massive six off the bowling of Matt Henry and racing to 24 runs off just 10 balls. However, he was unfortunately run out while backing up, as Henry deflected a drive from Billings onto the stumps.
Billings started cautiously but managed to clear the boundary for the first time off Ben Green in the seventh over, sending a delivery from outside off stump over deep square. The Spitfires ended the powerplay on 63 for 3, still within reach of victory.
Billings welcomed the introduction of legspinner Ish Sodhi with a six over long-on but was dismissed by Somerset’s captain, who bowled him with the final delivery of the ninth over. Leaning responded with a six over deep square off Overton’s bowling and followed it up with a boundary to third-man, accumulating 17 runs in the 11th over.
Experienced New Zealand legspinner Ish Sodhi claimed the wicket of Linde, caught at long-off, leaving Kent requiring 103 runs from the remaining 8 overs. Some defiant hitting from Leaning and Evison reduced the target to 69 runs from the last 5 overs.
Evison smashed a six off Green in the 16th over, adding 16 runs to the total. Leaning continued the assault by clearing the ropes off Davey’s bowling. However, when Leaning fell to Gregory two overs later after facing 30 balls, Somerset regained control of the match. Evison’s impressive effort came to an end when he was caught off Henry’s bowling, extinguishing Kent’s hopes of victory, and of being one of the eight quarterfinalists.
