The Cricketer runs down all you need to know ahead of the 20th edition of English cricket's premier 20-over competition, with Kent Spitfires looking to defend their title...
The 20th edition of English cricket's premier 20-over competition the Vitality Blast.
The competition kicks off on Wednesday (May 25) with a repeat of last year's final, with Kent Spitfires hosting Hampshire Hawks. Elsewhere, Yorkshire Vikings host Worcestershire Rapids.
The group phase runs until Sunday, July 3. The knock-out phase is scheduled as follows:
Wednesday, July 6: Quarter-final
Friday, July 8: Quarter-finals
Saturday, July 9: Quarter-final
Saturday, July 16: Finals Day (Edgbaston)
The 18 first-class counties have been split into two region groups, North and South, based on their location in England and Wales.
Every county plays 14 group matches, seven at home and seven away.
The top four from each group progress to the quarter-finals. The winners of each of those four ties qualify for Finals Day at Edgbaston, home of the showcase for the last nine successive editions, during which a semi-final and final, to crown the champion, is contested.
There will be no limit on Blast attendances this summer(Harry Trump/Getty Images)
The line-up for the last eight is determined by the performance of each county in the regionalised group stage. The draw is as follows:
North 1st vs South 4th
North 2nd vs South 3rd
South 1st vs North 4th
South 2nd vs North 3rd
North Group: Birmingham Bears, Derbyshire Falcons, Durham, Lancashire Lightning, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Notts Outlaws, Worcestershire Rapids, Yorkshire Vikings.
South Group: Essex Eagles, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire Hawks, Kent Spitfires, Middlesex, Somerset, Surrey, Sussex Sharks
Every county will play seven home and away fixtures during the group stages. The quarter-final hosts are determined by whichever team finishes higher in the group stages. The semi-final and final will be held at Edgbaston on July 16, the earliest final in the calendar since 2008.
Each knockout game has a reserve day.
The full fixture list for the T20 Blast can be found here
Naveen-ul-Haq returns to Leicestershire are topping the wickets chart last season (Tony Marshall/Getty Images)
Two-time winners Notts Outlaws naturally start as the bookmakers' favourites at 7/1 to scoop the title.
Out-of-sorts Sussex Sharks are available at 9/1 with some outlets, as are Lancashire Lightning who were last winners back in 2015.
Somerset and Surrey can also be found at 9/1, while Kent Spitfires are 10/1 to become the first side to successfully defend their crown.
Derbyshire Falcons, Durham, Glamorgan and Northants Steelbacks are where the value lies, all being rated at 33/1.
After three quarter-final defeats in six years, Kent Spitfires went all the way in 2021 to scoop their second title and first since 2007.
Having seen off Sussex Sharks in the semi-finals they took on Somerset, who had disposed of Hampshire Hawks in a thriller earlier in the day.
Player of the match Jordan Cox hit an unbeaten 58 as Kent put on 167 for 7 from their 20 overs.
Cox took that batting display into his performance in the field. First, he helped dismiss Will Smeed with a catch in the deep, before he produced a wonderful leap and pull back - which Matt Milnes collected beyond the rope - to see off Lewis Gregory.
Somerset would eventually fall short, finishing on 142 for 9 to lose out by 25 runs, to spark the Spitfires' celebrations.
TEAM GUIDES
Essex Eagles
Hampshire Hawks
Lancashire Lightning
Notts Outlaws
Surrey
Worcestershire Rapids
Tickets can be found for all counties via the ECB website. Click here for more information.
The last remaining tickets for Finals Day sold out earlier in the year. An additional allocation for the four counties that qualify will be sold at a later date once the line-up is confirmed.
Sky Sports have committed to showing 16 group matches from across the competition in May and June, with more towards the end of the group stage likely to follow. They will also broadcast all knock-out matches, including every ball from Finals Day.
The schedule is:
Wednesday, May 25: Kent Spitfires v Somerset
Friday, May 27: Lancashire Lightning v Yorkshire Vikings
Saturday, May 28: Leicestershire Foxes v Derbyshire Falcons
Wednesday, June 1: Gloucestershire v Kent Spitfires
Thursday, June 2: Glamorgan v Essex Eagles
Friday, June 3: Derbyshire Falcons v Notts Outlaws
Saturday, June 4: Hampshire Hawks v Sussex Sharks
Wednesday, June 8: Yorkshire Vikings v Lancashire Lightning
Notts Outlaws start as the early favourites (Tony Marshall/Getty Images)
Thursday, June 9: Middlesex v Surrey
Friday, June 10: Sussex Sharks v Gloucestershire
Friday, June 17: Surrey v Middlesex
Saturday, June 18: Worcestershire Rapids v Northants Steelbacks
Sunday, June 19: Durham v Leicestershire Foxes
Wednesday, June 22: Northants Steelbacks v Birmingham Bears
Thursday, June 23: Somerset v Hampshire Hawks
Friday, June 24: Birmingham Bears v Worcestershire Rapids
In the UK, Sky Sports have exclusive rights to this year's competition, with matches available on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Cricket.
All T20 Blast fixtures will be available via BBC Local Radio Stations with extensive coverage available on 5 Live Sports Extra.
Counties will also offer their streaming service of all other un-broadcasted matches, via their websites and YouTube channels.
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.