The Essex Eagles bring their Vitality Blast season to a close this evening when they entertain Kent Spitfires at The Cloudfm County Ground starting at 6:30pm.
Having completed the double over Middlesex with a 6-wicket victory at Lord’s last night, the Eagles are in good heart as they look to end their T20 season with another win.
The match this evening carries plenty of meaning, although they cannot make the latter stages, the Eagles are eager to sign off the Vitality Blast competition with a victory in front of their own fans whilst the Spitfires are assured of a place in the quarter-finals.
The ultra-consistent Varun Chopra recorded his 6th T20 half-century of the summer, but the stand-out performance came from Dan Lawrence. The 21-year-old hit 86, the highest score of the match, and when he was dismissed, he had carried his side to within 27 runs of victory. He also became only the second Eagles batsman to reach 50 in the T20 format this year.
Speaking about the game, Lawrence said: “It was a fantastic win and to chase down 210 is no mean feat. It was important for us to get back to winning ways having been without a victory for some while and hopefully, we can carry that momentum into tonight’s match and then onto the 6 Championship games that are left, and we can have a real push at that.
“It was nice to get the opportunity for me to bat a bit higher against Middlesex, it was nice to have a couple of powerplay overs to face when it is easier to score boundaries. I thought Varun played beautifully and we had a lot of fun in our partnership (105 in 10 overs).
“We are looking forward to tonight’s match with Kent Spitfires, and hopefully we can deliver a match-winning performance in front of our own Chelmsford crowd.”
Essex Eagles squad to face Kent Spitfires:
Ryan ten Doeschate (27) (C)
Adam Wheater (31) (WK)
Ravi Bopara (25)
Varun Chopra (6)
Matt Coles (1)
Sam Cook (16)
Simon Harmer (11)
Dan Lawrence (28)
Aron Nijjar (24)
Peter Siddle (64)
Shane Snater (29)
Paul Walter (22)
Ashar Zaidi (99)
