COLUMN: Somerset are 'best equipped' side in white ball cricket
Despite Sundays first defeat of the season in the T20 Blast against Kent, I believe it's generally accepted that Somerset are the best equipped side and have been for the last 5 or 6 years in the shorter of the two white ball competitions, writes Merv Colenutt.
Somerset were probably not quite at their best in the victory on Friday over Middlesex, but the old and probably the best saying in the game, catches win matches certainly proved to be the case in the defeat of Middlesex, where poor old Leus Du Plooy dropped two straight forward catches on the mid wicket boundary and was out to a first ball duck.
Advertisement
Somerset on the other hand, proved once again they are the best fielding outfit in the competition with Craig Overton once again pulling off an absolute diving stunner and the speed and aggression from the Somerset fielders in the opening power play of any game, so often sees the opposition score just one run, when other sides give away two runs.
Selection is always going to be of the main importance in any game and despite some grumblings among a small section, Lewis Goldsworthy did Somerset and himself proud by picking up 4 wickets in the defeat of Gloucestershire, this after bowling one over in each of the previous games.
Goldsworthy was the pick of the bowlers in that game and although not picking up a wicket against Kent on Sunday, he once again proved his worth by being the most economical.
Tom Banton batted superbly against Kent, yet once again there were a few rumblings before the game on whether the England man should bat at 6 and move Sean Dickson up to open.
Advertisement
The game however revolved around a quite brilliant match winning century from Kent's Daniel Bell-Drummond a former prodigy of Gerry Wilson, cricket coach at Millfield School, who always held Bell-Drummond in high regard and on this rare occasion, made both Matt Henry and Riley Merridith look fairly ordinary, he batted that well.
One player who must be feeling a little unlucky at present in the eyes of both leading horse trainer Michael Blake and former player Martyn Wright, has to be Tom Lammonby who has to look on from the sidelines and i also believe Jack Leach, when the wicket is turning can still be a match winner, but this is all about the strength in depth Somerset have that no other county side can boast of.
One final thought on England selection, if Craig Overton was playing for Surrey and Jamie for Somerset, would Craig get the nod over his twin brother when it comes to playing for his country, as i said, just a thought.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Hawks dealt defeat on road to T20 table-topping Somerset
LEWIS Gregory clubbed a brutal half century as Somerset defeated Hampshire Hawks by 17 runs at the Cooper Associates Ground to return to winning ways and move clear of Surrey at the top of the T20 Blast South Group table. Will Smeed smashed 68 from 37 balls with 9 fours and 3 sixes and dominated stands of 59 and 46 with Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Tom Abell for the second and third wickets respectively after Somerset had been put in beneath the Taunton floodlights. Advertisement But the home side lost their way during the middle overs and were indebted to skipper Gregory, who clubbed a much-needed 55 from 27 balls with 4 fours and 4 sixes and staged a record-breaking seventh-wicket partnership of 82 with Lewis Goldsworthy to propel the cider county to 209-6. Veteran all-rounder Benny Howell claimed 2-12 and Liam Dawson 1-29 as the Hawks struggled to contain the South Group leaders. James Vince raised a 30-ball 54 and South African hired hand Dewald Brevis crashed 36 from 16 deliveries, but Ben Green took 3-40 as Somerset took wickets at key moments to restrict Hawks to 192-7 and secure a sixth victory in seven outings in the short format this season. After the match, Hawks coach Adi Birrell said: "It's a disappointing outcome and I don't think we executed our skills very well. To allow Somerset to score 68 in the powerplay was too many. We followed with 57 when we batted, which was a big difference. "Somerset then scored 67 in the last five overs, which helped get them over 200. That's a big total on any ground. We bowled really well in the middle overs and took some wickets, but then allowed Lewis Gregory to score too many. Advertisement "He played well and we didn't bowl to our potential at the death. Somerset had a couple of big overs, with a 20 and a 25, whereas we had only one big over of 19. That keeps happening to us and it's something we're talking about. "James Vince was awesome, but he went and we got a bit behind. Riley Meredith took a wicket and conceded just three runs in a brilliant over and that won them the game. We always had a chance while Dewald Brevis was there, but his dismissal spelled the end."
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Somerset move top of South Group with victory against Hampshire
Somerset bounced back from defeat by Kent to see off Hampshire and move top of the South Group in the men's Vitality Blast. Will Smeed's 68 and 55 from captain Lewis Gregory helped the home side reach 209 for seven at Taunton, and that proved enough for a 17-run victory. Advertisement Captain James Vince cracked 54 from 30 balls as Hampshire made a good start to their chase but wickets fell regularly and they could only register 192 for seven. It was Somerset's sixth win from seven matches to put them ahead of Surrey, while Leicestershire continued their strong form in the North Group with a comfortable four-wicket victory against neighbours Nottinghamshire. Rehan Ahmed was the star of the show, taking two wickets as Notts were bowled out for 156 and then hitting 52 from 37 balls to help Leicestershire to 160 for six with 14 balls remaining. Essex remain winless after an agonising one-run defeat against fellow strugglers Middlesex at Lord's. Advertisement Kane Williamson was the standout with the bat for Middlesex with 53 as they were bowled out for 161 but Essex could not quite overhaul them, finishing on 160 for six. In the women's competition, The Blaze defeated Lancashire by five wickets for their fifth win from seven games. Ailsa Lister dominated Lancashire's innings with 79 from just 38 balls in a total of 150 for nine but that was overhauled by The Blaze with nearly two overs to spare. England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt hit 31 while Georgia Elwiss was unbeaten on 43 as the hosts reached 153 for five. Somerset remain winless at the bottom of the table after losing by five runs to Hampshire. Maia Bouchier, Charli Knott and Freya Kemp's 65 not out carried Hampshire to 169 for six, and Somerset could only reach 164 for six despite 60 from Niamh Holland.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Robinson joins Northants as Breetzke replacement
Tim Robinson has made 10 T20 international appearances for New Zealand [Getty Images] Northamptonshire have signed New Zealand international Tim Robinson on a short-term deal. The 23-year-old batter joins the County Championship side as Matt Breetzke's replacement after the South Africa international was called up for the Proteas' upcoming Test series against Zimbabwe. Advertisement Northamptonshire head coach Darren Lehmann described it as "a real like-for-like replacement". Robinson will be available for four T20 Blast fixtures in July as well as two County Championship matches, starting with their meeting with Middlesex on Sunday. "He's a strong young man; he hits the ball big and opens the batting in white ball," Lehmann told the club website. "He looks like a really good player, so fingers crossed he gets some runs for us and plays well across both formats."
