T20 Blast 2022 | Pollard, Rossouw spark chase exhibition in gripping South Group evening

Essex v/s Somerset

Hosts Essex, under Simon Harmer, lost the high-scoring Chelmsford plot despite Michael Pepper’s 49-ball 86*. Batting first, they charted 188-5 riding on Pepper’s rapid effort and Paul Walter’s double-quick 58.

Remarkably, the Somerset batters overhauled the hosts' total with 15 balls to spare. Facing crisis at 41-2, middle-order batters Rilee Rossouw (85* off 36 balls) and captain Tom Abell (62* off 46 balls) slammed match-winning half-centuries in the second half of the evening.

Brief scores:

Essex 188-5 (20)
Michael Pepper 86* (49), Paul Walter 58 (29);
Jack Brooks 2-23

Somerset 194-2 (17.3)
Rilee Rossouw 85* (36), Tom Abell 62* (46)
Daniel Sams 1-29, Ben Allison 1-32

Result: Somerset won by 8 wickets

Glamorgan v/s Sussex

Taking home advantage, Glamorgan collected two points by defeating Sussex at Cardiff. The David Lloyd-led side chased down the visitors' 149-run total with an over to spare. Number 3 batter Colin Ingram empowered Glamorgan’s response with a 43-ball 57.

Brief scores:

Sussex Sharks 149-8 (20)
Luke Wright 46 (35), Tom Alsop 34 (28);
Michael Neser 3-24, Andrew Salter 2-30

Glamorgan 151-6 (19)
Colin Ingram 57 (43), Sam Northeast 35 (32);
Tymal Mills 3-30, Ravi Bopara 2-15

Result: Glamorgan won by 4 wickets

Hampshire v/s Surrey

Surrey continue their reign at the top of the South Group points table with a win over hosts Hampshire at Southampton. Winning the toss and fielding first, they conceded 151 to the James Vince-led side upfront.

Chris Jordan’s Surrey chased down their target in 19.1 overs, with West Indies import Kieron Pollard accounting for a 22-ball 34 in the middle overs.

Brief scores:

Hampshire 151-7 (20)
James Fuller 39* (22), James Vince 30 (20);
Jamie Overton 2-21, Gus Atkinson 2-26

Surrey 152-6 (19.1)
Kieron Pollard 34 (22), Laurie Evans 29 (24);
Liam Dawson 2-21, James Fuller 2-31

Result: Surrey won by 6 wickets 

Middlesex vs Kent Spitfires

Middlesex, at their home ground, registered their fourth win of the ongoing T20 Blast 2022 season to jump to the seventh spot in the nine-team South Group points table. They pipped defending champions Kent Spitfires by seven wickets and 15 deliveries to spare at the Lord’s Cricket Ground.

The win by the Stephen Eskinazi-led side also snapped their six-match losing streak this year.

In the crackerjack of a contest, it was Middlesex’s all-round bowling, led by Tom Helm and Chris Green, that stopped Kent on a below-par score of 141 for 9; before a 91-run stand between John Simpson and Joe Cracknell took the home team over the finish line. 

Brief scores:

Kent Spitfires 141-9 (20)
Sam Billings 29 (33), Jordan Cox 23 (20);
Chris Green 2-18, Tom Helm 2-20 

Middlesex 143-3 (17.3)
John Simpson 46 (35), Joe Cracknell 43* (37);
Fred Klaassen 2-43

Result: Middlesex won by 7 wickets