The Cricketer wraps up the best of the action from the latest round of matches in the 2024 Vitality Blast
Worcester: Worcestershire 155-7, Birmingham 159-5 - Birmingham win by five wickets
Sam Hain and Jacob Bethell powered Birmingham Bears to the top of the North Group in the Vitality Blast as they overpowered local rivals Worcestershire Rapids by five wickets at Visit Worcestershire New Road.
Hain and Bethell joined forces with the Bears floundering at 7 for 3 in reply to Worcestershire's 155 for 7. They both hit half centuries and featured in a century partnership to guide Birmingham to a fourth successive win.
Hain was dismissed with one run needed for 76 to end a stand of 148 – a record fourth-wicket partnership against Worcestershire in the competition, beating the 113 in 2014 by Durham's Calum MacLeod and Paul Collingwood at Chester-le-Street.
But Bethell remained undefeated on 71 to see the Bears home with 2.1 overs to spare.
Chester-le-Street: Durham 170-6, Yorkshire 167-7 - Durham win by three runs
Australian quick Ben Dwarshuis defended eight off the last over to complete a thrilling come-from-behind Durham victory to beat Yorkshire and leapfrog them into the North Group's top four places.
Yorkshire, chasing 171, were cruising at 113 for 2 in the 12th over before leg-spinner Nathan Sowter bowled buccaneering Will Luxton for 33 and had Jordan Thompson brilliantly caught and bowled on the run towards long-on.
Left-armer Dwarshuis then claimed his first wicket for Durham in the last over and defended four off the last ball against George Hill. The Vikings, replying to 170 for 6 finished on 167 for 7, handing Durham a fourth win in eight games – this by three runs. Yorkshire lost their fourth in eight.
Gloucestershire stunned Somerset for a famous win (Harry Trump/Getty Images)
Northampton: Northamptonshire 208-5, Leicestershire 208-7 - match tied
Leicestershire's Rishi Patel maintained his rich vein of form in this year's Vitality Blast, savaging Northamptonshire's bowlers for an outstanding 104 from 45 balls to set up a thrilling tie at Wantage Road.
Patel, the Blast's leading run-scorer this season, equalled the Foxes' fastest-ever T20 century – set by Ben Raine against Birmingham six years ago – as he reached the landmark in just 41 deliveries.
The 25-year-old opener upstaged Steelbacks skipper David Willey, who marked his 300th career T20 game by top-scoring with 71 from 48 – and passing 4,000 runs in the format – as the home side posted 208 for 5.
Northamptonshire struggled in the face of Patel's onslaught, but rookie seamer Raphy Weatherall pegged the Foxes back with 4 for 50 before Lewis Goldsworthy edged a boundary from his final delivery to tie the contest.
Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 173-5, Derbyshire 165-8 - Nottinghamshire win by eight runs
Notts Outlaws avenged a heavy defeat at Derby with an eight-run victory at Trent Bridge to keep their Vitality Blast season just about alive.
Joe Clarke's side climb off the bottom of the North Group table for the first time with their second win. After losing their first five matches, qualification for the quarter-finals will be a tall order but it remains mathematically possible.
Clarke, still searching for his first half century of the season, hit 47 from 28 balls with Tom Moores (31) and Matt Montgomery (28 not out) adding useful late runs to give the Falcons a target of 174, skipper Samit Patel taking 2 for 24 on his first visit to Trent Bridge as a Derbyshire player, supported by Pat Brown's two for 39.
Aneurin Donald hit a 26-ball 52 and veteran Wayne Madsen 40 from 35 in the Falcons' response but a solid performance with the ball by the home side, led by New Zealand left-arm quick Ben Lister taking two for 24 in his final appearance, ensured there would be no fairytale return for Patel.
Jacob Bethell is in fine form (Michael Steele/Getty Images)
Bristol: Somerset 188-4, Gloucestershire 190-5 - Gloucestershire win by five wickets
A superb display of clean hitting from Ollie Price and Ben Charlesworth propelled Gloucestershire to a thrilling five-wicket triumph over arch-rivals Somerset in a Vitality Blast derby encounter to remember at the Seat Unique Stadium in Bristol.
Coming together with the score on 108 for 5 in the fourteenth over, Gloucestershire's young guns staged a blistering unbroken sixth wicket stand of 82 in 32 balls as the home side chased down a target of 189 with eight balls to spare, Price top-scoring with 43 from 15 deliveries and Charlesworth contributing a 19-ball 36.
Somerset had no answer as Price accrued four sixes and three fours, while Charlesworth mustered two sixes and a quartet of fours to bring a sell-out crowd of 7,000 to their feet.
Tom Banton had earlier posted a high-octane 79 from 53 balls, smashing eight fours and three sixes and dominating crucial stands of 66 and 76 with Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Tom Abell for the second and third wickets respectively as the defending champions ran up 188 for 4 after losing the toss.
Canterbury: Kent 156-7, Essex 157-5 - Essex win by five wickets
Essex condemned the Kent Spitfires to a fifth consecutive Vitality Blast defeat on Friday night as they cruised to a five-wicket win at Canterbury.
Simon Harmer, Ben Allison and Matt Critchley all claimed two wickets as Kent were limited to 156 for 7, Sam Billings the highest scorer with 38.
It never looked like being enough on a typically batter-friendly St Lawrence wicket and Michael Pepper blasted 76 from 42 balls as the visitors coasted home with five overs to spare, finishing on 157 for 5.
Dom Sibley led Surrey's run-chase against Glamorgan (Ben Hoskins/Getty Images)
Kia Oval: Glamorgan 107-9, Surrey 108-1 - Surrey win by nine wickets
South Group leaders Surrey crushed Glamorgan by nine wickets after a superb bowling performance, spearheaded by the pace of Gus Atkinson, Sean Abbott and Spencer Johnson, restricted the Welsh county to just 107 for 9 from their 20 overs.
Atkinson took wickets with his first and fourth balls early on and finished with 3 for 19, Abbott followed up his 5 for 18 against Middlesex 24 hours earlier by taking 3 for 25 and his fellow Australian, left-arm quick Johnson, picked up 1 for 16 from his four overs.
Marnus Labuschagne was top-scorer with 20 and tailender Chris Sole made the next highest score with 15 not out, and Glamorgan's total was put into context as Surrey rushed to 108 for 1 in reply in only nine overs.
Southampton: Sussex 184-8, Hampshire 177-3 - Sussex win by seven runs
Nathan McAndrew was electric with the bat and miserly with the ball as Sussex Sharks went second in the Vitality Blast South Group with a seven-run victory over Hampshire Hawks.
Australian allrounder McAndrew hammered 32 off 11 balls to boost an underwhelming score, with the help of Tom Alsop's 43 off 27.
James Vince bagged his fifth 50-plus score in his last six T20 innings against Sussex and Joe Weatherley picked up 68 not out.
But McAndrew returned one for 21 – spoiled only by a penultimate ball no ball – before Danny Lamb defended 25 off the last over to give the Sharks a first Utilita Bowl win since 2020 and pull out a six-point buffer on Hampshire.
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