MEN'S T20 BLAST ROUNDUP: Victories for Kent, Surrey and Hampshire intensifies the race to reach the quarter-finals from the southern section
Edgbaston: Birmingham Bears 203-9, Lancashire 167 - Bears won by 36 runs
Birmingham Bears opened the T20 Blast North Group right up with a 36-run victory over leaders Lancashire Lightning at Edgbaston.
Warwickshire stacked up 203 for 9, their first 200-plus total against Lancashire in the Blast, thanks to Dan Mousley's thunderous 32 from 12 balls, which took them to 74 in the powerplay, and Ed Barnard's luscious 54 (34). Jack Blatherwick and Tom Hartley emerged from the onslaught with a creditable 3 for 29 and 2 for 29 respectively.
Lancashire replied with 167 all out from 18.1 overs, their chase undone right at the start when George Garton (4 for 28) dismissed both openers in the first over. They slumped to 111 for seven, and Hartley's violent late 35 (16) was in a lost cause as the Lightning faded to defeat beneath the beautiful, burgundy Birmingham sunset.
The Bears' win means just eight points separate the top six as the North group heads towards its denouement.
Hove: Sussex 148, Kent 151-8 - Kent won by two wickets
Joey Evison was Kent's hero with a thumping 48 off 24 balls as the Spitfires kept their hopes of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Vitality Blast alive with a two-wicket win with three balls to spare over Sussex Sharks in a low-scoring thriller at Hove.
Chasing 149, Kent were struggling on 112 for 8 after Tymal Mills picked up two wickets in three balls in the 16th over. But Evison, who had already hit James Coles’ left-arm spin for successive sixes, helped Fred Klaassen take 17 off the 17th over from Ollie Robinson, including another six before clearing the rope with a straight hit off Tymal Mills in the 18th.
That left Kent needing 12 from the last two and five off the final over, and it was fitting that Evison hit the winning runs when he drove Danny Lamb to the extra cover boundary.
The hosts could have gone second, but instead, a second successive defeat at the 1st Central County Ground has left them with work to do to finish in the top four, with Kent and Hampshire Hawks joining them on 22 points in a congested top half of the table.
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Bristol: Surrey 193-7, Gloucestershire 165-9 - Surrey won by 28 runs
Will Jacks led the way with an impressive half century as Surrey defeated Gloucestershire by 28 runs at the Seat Unique Stadium to move a step closer to quarter-final qualification in the T20 Blast.
The England international hit 57 from 35 balls with a four and 5 sixes and dominated a stand of 87 in 9.2 overs for the third wicket with Sam Curran, who posted 46, as the visitors scored 193 for 7 after being inserted on a used Bristol track. Josh Shaw claimed 3 for 41 as Gloucestershire fought back, but knocks of 32 and 31 not out from Tom Curran and Dan Lawrence, respectively, carried Surrey to a formidable total.
D'Arcy Short kept Gloucestershire in the hunt by scoring an eye-catching 70 from 53 balls, but he lacked support and Jacks and Adam Zampa claimed 4 for 56 between them from seven overs of spin as Surrey restricted the home side to 165 for 9. Seamers Sam Curran and Chris Jordan took 3 for 32 and 2 for 26 respectively as the Londoners won with something to spare.
Victory moves second-placed Surrey to within eight points of South Group leaders Somerset, who have played a game more, but defending champions Gloucestershire will need to win their remaining four games if they are to have any chance of making the knockout stages.
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Merchant Taylors': Middlesex 187-8, Hampshire 188-7 - Hampshire won by three wickets
Former Middlesex allrounder James Fuller returned to haunt his old team with a crucial unbeaten 43 from 26 balls as Hampshire squeezed over the line at Merchant Taylors' School to keep their T20 Blast hopes alive.
The Hawks were under pressure at 157 for seven, needing 31 from 13, when the final ball of Noah Cornwell's stint sailed over Fuller for four byes plus a no-ball – and momentum swung as the batter capitalised on the resulting free hit to crack six off Leus du Plooy.
Stephen Eskinazi, who stood down as Middlesex's T20 captain earlier in the day, led the way for his side with an outstanding knock of 94 from 48, sharing partnerships of 69 from 40 and 82 from 51 with Kane Williamson and Max Holden respectively.
But Hawks seamer Scott Currie (four for 32) removed both Eskinazi and Holden, triggering a middle-order collapse as Middlesex shed seven wickets for 34 and fell below the 200-plus total that had looked likely.
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