We’re going so well at the moment, says big-hitting Phillips
GLENN Phillips scored an unbeaten 94 for the second game running as Gloucestershire beat Sussex Sharks by 27 runs at Hove to make it four successive wins in the Vitality Blast and stay top of the South Group.
The 24-year-old New Zealander led a superb recovery from 35-4 at the end of the powerplay to 162-5 against the previously unbeaten Sharks. Gloucestershire’s seamers, led by Benny Howell who took four wickets, then did their bit to ensure Phillips’ efforts did not go to waste. Only Luke Wright (33) got the measure of conditions as Sussex were dismissed for 135.
Such a scenario looked unlikely when Gloucestershire made a poor start having been put in. Ollie Robinson had Miles Hammond caught at long-on off his third ball before Howell was run out by Ravi Bopara’s direct hit from extra cover.
Tymal Mills had Chris Dent caught behind and James Bracey
taken at midwicket in his first over but that was the last success Sussex enjoyed until Mills, who finished with 3-20, removed skipper Jack Taylor in the final over.
Taylor helped Phillips add 124, a new Gloucestershire T20 record for any wicket against Sussex, although it wasn’t until deep in the innings before they really cut loose when 82 runs were plundered in the final seven overs, including 25 off leftarmer George Garton in his last appearance before he joins up with England’s one-day squad. Phillips, who made an unbeaten 94 against
Glamorgan on Thursday, didn’t hit his first six until the 12th over but added four more and seven boundaries, to take his competition aggregate to 266 runs, while Taylor gave him excellent support with 38.
Sussex would still have fancied their chances of chasing at eight an over, but they never recovered from losing Phil Salt and Travis Head in David Payne’s opening burst.
Bopara and David Wiese also went cheaply and, after skipper Luke Wright sliced a drive off Benny Howell to backward point for 33 in the ninth over, Sussex’s race was effectively run.
Howell bowled outstandingly, finishing with 4-15 as the Sharks slumped to 78-8 before Robinson (31) and Mills (27) hit career-bests at the end to provide the 2,500 crowd with some entertainment.
Phillips said: “We are going so well at the moment as a team, consistency is the key and hopefully we can keep it going.
“When I came in it was a tough situation and Jack and I knew we had to take it as deep as possible in our innings and try to get a competitive total. It was a used pitch which was quite tough to bat on and we knew that 150 would be a competitive total.”