So far, so as expected for a Middlesex Blast Campaign. Marquee signing in place. Expectations high. Two matches in and two defeats. Middlesex fans can be forgiven for thinking they’ve seen this movie before.
But, those of longer standing, will probably have a sneaky soft spot for Kent. It was they that Middlesex beat by just 3 runs to win their only Blast final, on what, thus far, is their only appearance at Finals Day.
Seventeen years on, could Middlesex turn the tide on another disappointing Blast start and put their first points on the board this season. Kent, just as they had been in 2008, would likely be as tough a nut to crack as were Rob Key’s men at Southampton.
A rain sodden day was making way to a dull but dry evening as Steve Eskinazi won the toss and elected to field, happy perhaps to have Josh Little at his disposal for the first time. Although the rain returned immediately thereafter, the delay was brief and the covers were on and off again in rapid order.
Mixing pace and spin, Middlesex’s bowling looked altogether sharper than it had against Sussex or Glamorgan and sure enough in the third over, Tom Helm had Bell Drummond fishing and edging to Davis outside off stump and Kent were 21 for 1.
At the Nursery End Zafar Gohar was finding plenty of dip and flight although rather let himself down by overstepping and he was succeeded there by Little, who’s first over went for fifteen, concluding with a towering six by England’s Zak Crawley. By the end of the Powerplay, Crawley and Tawande Muyeye had taken Kent to 54 for 1. A decent return, but also one Middlesex will have been relieved to be 18 less than the 72 smoked by Sussex at Lords a week ago.
Change of ends and fortune for Gohar
In rapid order, a change of ends brought better fortune for Gohar who nipped one though the aggressive Muyeye and Luke Hollman had veteran Joe Denly stumped, albeit after a Davis fumble and an extended review. Kent were 75 for 3, but Crawley and Billings together at the crease presented plenty of threat to the home side. A reverse sweep for Billings was typically impish. His second attempt at the same shot, however, saw him perish as Luke Hollman found a fuller length.
Kent passed their hundred in just over 12 overs and were keen to accelerate, but Gohar continued to be a tricky to get away. When Chris Benjamin unleashed a drive to deep cover off Josh Little, Ben Geddes swooped and arrowed in a throw that left the diving Benjamin well short of his ground as he looked for a second run.
Hollman bags Zak Crawley
Zak Crawley, continued to motor the Kent innings forward and brought up his fifty with a six off Hollman to deep mid-wicket. Flushed with that success he repeated the dose next ball, but it wasn’t to be third time lucky as Ryan Higgins judged a tricky catch and Hollman had ‘rope a doped’ Crawley, absorbing the punishment then finding the perfect counter punch.
Aussie Tom Rogers perished for a lively 16, caught in the deep by Zohar off Josh Little, then Tom Helm picked up two in two, dispatching Grant Stewart before Wes Agar, brother of Ashton, immediately followed, caught by sub fielder Joe Cracknell, on the field for Williamson who had taken an earlier sharp blow to the hand. A brief flurry of late hitting by Kent’s second Zimbabwean Nathan Gilchrist, assisted by Fred Klassen saw the Spitfires to a competitive, but by no means out of reach, 172 for 9 after their twenty overs.
For Kent, Crawley’s 57 showed him at his best. For the hosts, all the bowlers looked sharp, with Tom Helm’s 3/29 the stand out performance along with Luke Hollman’s 3/42. Both Josh Little and Zafar Gohar will also feel that they deserved more than their one wicket each.
It was a game beautifully poised. Sadly, the rain had other ideas. Relentlessly it fell from the moment the teams left the field at the end of the Kent innings to the point at which the umpires conceded, ten minutes ahead of the cut off time, that that, would be that. Points shared in a game both teams would have felt was very winnable at the half way stage.
