Hampshire v Essex Eagles
Vitality Blast
Sunday 25 August
The Ageas Bowl, Southampton
Hampshire Team: Rilee Rossouw, James Vince (c), Sam Northeast, Liam Dawson, Chris Morris, James Fuller, Lewis McManus (wk), Ian Holland, Tabraiz Shamsi, Kyle Abbott, Chris Wood
Essex Eagles Team: Cameron Delport, Tom Westley, Adam Wheater (wk), Dan Lawrence, Ryan ten Doeschate, Ravi Bopara, Paul Walter, Simon Harmer (c), Mohammad Amir, Aaron Beard, Adam Zampa
Umpires: Ian Gould and Billy Taylor
Toss: Hampshire won the toss and elected to bowl first
Result: Match Tied
Match Reaction: Simon Harmer
Match Report
The Eagles’ Vitality Blast match with Hampshire ended as a tie after the home side scored 41 runs from their final three overs to level the scores.
Another superb effort by Dan Lawrence, who scored 69, left Essex defending a total of 139 for 7 but after 17 overs of their reply their opponents had reached 98 for 4 and the Eagles seemingly set for victory.
However, Sam Northeast, who had batted steadily to complete a 46-ball half-century, then upped the tempo to organise a thrilling finale.
James Fuller struck a quickfire 17 to support Northeast before he was run out by Lawrence from deep mid-wicket in the 18th over that realised 10 runs, but the crucial over proved to be the next.
Aaron Beard was adjudged to have sent down three wides in his first five deliveries in the over and his frustration was compounded when three of the final four legitimate balls were sent by Northeast to the boundary ropes.
That left the home side 129 for 5 and facing Mohammad Amir for the final over of the game. The Pakistan quickie was also called for two wides either side of another boundary by Northeast and the target became 3 runs from two balls.
Lewis McManus collected a single from the first to leave Northeast with the strike. The batsman struck the ball firmly to Adam Zampa in the leg side and ran the first before setting off for a failed attempted second as the fielder executed a comfortable run out to dismiss Northeast for 73.
It left the two teams with their second tied match in as any seasons.
The Eagles had been into bat and lost Tom Westley to the first ball of the game when he was lbw to Chris Wood. Seven balls later, Cameron Delport edged Kyle Abbott behind but Lawrence joined Adam Wheater to revive the visitors fortunes with a well-composed third wicket stand worth 83 in 11 overs.
Both kept the scoreboard ticking along with their 50 partnership spanning 43 balls. They played responsibly eschewing possible demise with authentic cricket strokes before Wheater departed for 34, one of only three Eagles batsmen to post double figures.
Ryan ten Doeschate went with the score on 95 but Ravi Bopara joined Lawrence to add 29 before Lawrence’s excellent effort worth 69 in 47 balls, and including 1 six and 8 fours, ended when he swung Tabraiz Shamsi to backward point.
Lawrence had completed his 4th half-century of the season in the competition this summer and 13 in all competitions this season whilst he is now the Eagles highest run-getter in this T20 campaign with 302 runs.
His departure left the Eagles 124 for 5 in the 17th over and they managed just 2 more runs in the next during which they lost two more wickets including Bopara for 14 when he missed an attempted scoop against Abbott and was bowled.
Abbott sent down two of the last three overs of the Eagles innings costing just 6 runs on his way to figures of 3 for 15 and leaving the visitors with a modest total to defend.
But they were given a fine start by Beard and Amir who whipped out the dangerous opening pair of James Vince and Rilee Rossouw inside three overs at a cost of 5 runs, both victims of Bopara catches at deep mid-wicket.
That left Northeast to supervise the quest for victory. Joined by Liam Dawson, the pair gathered 68 in 11 overs before Simon Harmer removed Dawson for 31 and Chris Morris for 2 in successive overs as Hampshire found themselves 86 for 4 and then 98 for 4 with three overs to be bowled against an attack that had bowled skilfully to restrict the home side.
Northeast, though, took on the challenge in a tantalising conclusion that was ultimately to leave both sides with a point and their hopes of a quarter-final place still alive – just.
