Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Records tumble in big Spitfires run chase at Oval
‘Daniel was brilliant down the other end’ FIXTURES
opening partner Daniel Bell-drummond – the highest stand for any wicket in Kent T20 matches.
It continued a rich vein of form for Denly who set his First Class best score of 227 at Worcestershire last month before sharing Kent’s highest red-ball stand of 382 with Sean Dickson against Northants at the start of July.
Denly said: “Chasing 206 in front of a packed house at The Oval, it doesn’t get much better than that. Surrey are a fiery bunch on the pitch but Record-breaking heroics from centurion Joe Denly and Daniel Bell-drummond helped Kent Spitfires claim a stunning win over Surrey at The Oval on Friday night. Denly smashed a career-best T20 knock of 116 not out from just 63 balls to inspire a superb chase after Surrey posted an imposing total of 205-5 to win by eight wickets with three balls to spare. Despite being asked to bat first by Kent skipper Sam Northeast, openers Jason Roy and Aaron Finch got the hosts off to a blistering start and put on 108 for the opening wicket in nine overs before Roy edged fit-again Mitch Claydon to James Tredwell for 55 from just 30 balls. Kent wrestled some initiative back and Finch departed to the next delivery, the first of occasional spinner Denly’s opening over and headed back to the pavilion with 49 from 25 balls, featuring four fours and three sixes. Kumar Sangakkara was held to KENT’S NEXT FIVE GAMES ... T20 July 27 Somerset (Canterbury) ...T20 July 30 Glamorgan (Canterbury)
Key: T20 = Natwest T20 Blast 24 before being caught by Alex Blake off Adam Milne, who also bowled Dom Dibley (33) with Surrey on 190 in the 19th over. Milne ran out Sam Curran for one but a career-best 29 not out from Ollie Pope saw the hosts post 205-5 from their 20 overs. Milne finished with 2-33 from his four overs with Claydon taking 1-37 and Denly 1-15 from two. The reply could not have begun better for the visitors as Bell-drummond and Denly eventually got Kent ahead of the required run-rate of 10.25 an over. Bell-drummond breezed to his eighth T20 half-century with six fours but departed for 64, caught by Pope off Jade Dernbach with Kent needing 43 runs from the final 26 balls to make it two wins from three in the South Group. Sam Billings joined Denly, in the nervous 90s and cracked a four, a single and a six in the first three deliveries he faced before Denly brought up three-figures from the 54th ball he faced, included eight fours and six sixes. Billings holed out to Tom Curran off Dernbach later in the same over for 16 but the Spitfires needed just 17 runs from the final two overs and Denly and Alex Blake got them home with three balls to spare.