MEN'S T20 BLAST ROUNDUP: A pulsating final round of matches in the first block of games included doses of drama, not least at Chester-le-Street, where Yorkshire batted through a power cut
Chelmsford: Kent 219-3, Essex 172 - Kent won by 47 runs
Tawanda Muyeye cemented himself as the leading run scorer in the Men's T20 Blast 2025 with a jaw-dropping maiden century – as Kent Spitfires tore rivals Essex apart.
Muyeye became Kent's eighth T20 hundred-maker, with the club's joint-most sixes in an innings as he hoisted his bat on a stunning 100.
He and opening partner Daniel Bell-Drummond are the only two players to reach three figures in this year's competition, with Muyeye's 362 runs leading the charts.
Matt Parkinson's first T20 five-wicket haul pulled the rug out from under Essex's doomed chase of 220 as they were bowled out for 172, despite Dean Elgar's patient 50 and Simon Harmer's late pyrotechnic 55.
***
Bristol: Hampshire 124-9, Gloucestershire 130-8 - Gloucestershire won by two wickets
David Payne deployed all his considerable experience to propel Gloucestershire to a dramatic two-wicket victory over Hampshire Hawks in a low-scoring but memorable T20 Blast contest at Bristol.
Chasing a modest 125 to win and buoyed by D'Arcy Short's 41-ball 49, Gloucestershire were cruising at 112 for 4 in the 16th, only to then lose four wickets for the addition of 11 runs to set up a nerve-jangling finale.
With the scores level, Payne kept his composure to lift the final ball, bowled by Chris Wood, over long-on for an astonishing last-gasp match-winning six.
The veteran left-arm seamer had earlier claimed 3 for 20 from four overs to undermine Hampshire's top-order and help restrict the visitors to 124 for 9 after they had been inserted on a characteristically slow Bristol pitch.
Josh Shaw and Ben Charlesworth weighed in with two wickets apiece, and Miles Hammond claimed a remarkable five catches as Gloucestershire picked up a second win in as many games to keep alive their outside hopes of making the quarter-finals.
Related: Middlesex look forward with Dane Vilas after laying three-year Lord's drought to rest
Tawanda Muyeye reeled off a sublime century at Chelmsford (Harry Trump/Getty Images)
Kia Oval: Surrey 194-8, Middlesex 119 - Surrey won by 75 runs
Will Jacks' scintillating 97 led Surrey to a fifth win in a row as they thrashed London neighbours Middlesex by 75 runs at the Kia Oval.
The England all-rounder, not required for Test duty against India, nevertheless reminded the selectors of his batting prowess, pummelling five sixes and 10 fours in a 56-ball masterclass. Noah Cornwell and Ryan Higgins were the pick of the Middlesex attack with two wickets apiece.
Middlesex were never in it in reply, subsiding to 119 all out, New Zealand spinner Mitchell Santner taking 3 for 25.
It was a sobering watch for new Seaxes head coach Dane Vilas, who will officially take charge ahead of the County Championship clash with Northamptonshire on Sunday (June 22)
Cardiff: Glamorgan 130-9, Somerset 131-4 - Somerset won by six wickets
Somerset continued their remarkable form in the T20 Blast, cruising to a six-wicket win against Glamorgan.
After restricting Glamorgan to 130 for 9 courtesy of 4 for 21 from Australian overseas Riley Merideth, Somerset knocked off a sub-par total to remain top of the South Group and head into the mid-competition break with seven wins from eight, while Glamorgan's symmetrical win-loss record makes them likely to drop outside the all-important top four.
Top-order contributions throughout the Somerset innings set up the win comfortably in the run chase for the middle-order to wrap up risk-free.
Dan Douthwaite caused trouble, taking 3 for 32 in an attempt to give the hosts a glimmer of hope.
Derby: Lancashire 243-7 Derbyshire 163- Lancashire won by 80 runs
Lancashire put on a dazzling display of batting to crush Derbyshire Falcons by 80 runs on a record-breaking night in the T20 Blast North Group game at the County Ground.
Luke Wells smashed eight sixes in his 83 off 44 balls, and Matty Hurst hammered 50 off 20 balls to equal the fastest T20 fifty for Lancashire set by Jos Buttler in 2016.
Lightning's 243 for 7 was their highest in T20 cricket and contained 17 sixes, the most by any side in the competition at Derby.
Related: Northamptonshire confirm "like-for-like" overseas replacement for Matt Breetzke
Matty Hurst entered the Lancashire history books (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Northampton: Notts Outlaws 164-8, Northamptonshire 140 - Notts Outlaws won by 24 runs
Tom Moores smashed 53 off just 27 balls to help set up a 24-run T20 Blast victory over Northamptonshire Steelbacks at Wantage Road.
Moores struck five fours and three sixes to regain the initiative for the Outlaws after they made just 33 for two in the powerplay. He shared a 43-run partnership with Jack Haynes (32) in five overs.
However, the visitors were still well behind the pace on 111 for five after 16 overs before Moores blazed 20 off one over from Luke Procter (2 for 26) and, with three lower middle order batters each smashing a six, Nottinghamshire closed on a competitive 164 for eight.
Ricardo Vasconcelos (18) and Justin Broad (16) started briskly in the chase, but the hosts lost early wickets and failed to push on, struggling on 50 for four after 10 overs. Outlaws off-spinners Matt Montgomery (3 for 22) and Farhan Ahmed (2 for 23) were key in putting the squeeze on the hosts.
David Willey thumped two sixes in his 20, and while Saif Zaib (37) and Lewis McManus (22) put on 45 in 4.3 overs, the game finished in a clatter of wickets, the last five falling in 12 balls.
Chester-le-Street: Durham 193-4, Yorkshire 130 - Durham won by 63 runs
Durham claimed their second T20 Blast win over Yorkshire in six days as they strengthened their position inside the North Group's top four places with a comprehensive victory at the Banks Homes Riverside.
With this 63-run success, Durham's fifth in eight matches, they all but ended Yorkshire's chances of reaching the quarter-finals. This was their sixth defeat in eight as they failed to chase 194.
Durham's 193 for 4 included a series of dynamic contributions, led by opener Graham Clark's 53 off 35 balls. New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham also starred with 42 not out off 21 before striking twice with the ball in defence.
Yorkshire's forlorn chase continued through a ground power cut, and they were bowled out for 130 inside 18 overs. Opener Adam Lyth top-scored with 38.
Related: New men's domestic schedule: What are the options and how will they work?
Graham Clark bats on his way to a breezy 53 in 35 balls (Mark Fletcher/Durham Cricket)
Edgbaston: Worcestershire 134, Birmingham Bears 135-9 - Birmingham Bears won by one wicket
Birmingham Bears took the local derby honours against Worcestershire Rapids with a thrilling one-wicket T20 Blast victory in a low-scoring nerve-shredder at Edgbaston.
The Rapids, put in, floundered to 134 all out in 18.4 overs in the face of the experienced Bears spin attack. Dan Mousley took a T20 best 4 for 19, Danny Briggs 2 for 20 and Jake Lintott 2 for 27 as no batter reached 30.
Warwickshire then scraped to 135 for nine with three balls to spare. Alex Davies (42, 24) supplied a violent start and, after Fateh Singh (3 for 18) and Ben Dwarshuis (3 for 32), forced a collapse, last pair Sam Hain (38 not out, 30) and Jake Lintott took the Bears over the line with three balls to spare.
Welcome to www.thecricketer.com - the online home of the world’s oldest cricket magazine. Breaking news, interviews, opinion and cricket goodness from every corner of our beautiful sport, from village green to national arena.