Century maker Hill guides Foxes to six-wicket victory
VISITORS ENJOYED FLAT BATTING TRACK
A LEWIS Hill century and 85 from Louis Kimber guided Leicestershire to a six-wicket Royal London OneDay Cup win over Somerset at Taunton, writes Richard Latham.
Captain Hill cracked 107 off 106 balls, with seven fours and two sixes, sharing a fifth-wicket stand of 158 with Kimber, whose runs came from just 57 deliveries, to set up victory with more than five overs to spare.
Somerset made 326 for seven after losing the toss, George Bartlett hitting seven sixes in his 108, a maiden List A Century, and 17-year-old debutant George Thomas contributing a promising 75.
But it didn’t prove enough on a flat batting track in increasingly sunny conditions.
The hosts were reduced to 104 for five in the 22nd over, despite a fluent 57-ball half-century from opener Steve Davies.
A 3,100-crowd saw Sam Young, Eddie Byrom, James Hildreth and Lewis Goldsworthy fall cheaply, Ben Mike striking with his first delivery of the match in the eighth over.
Davies struck six fours and a six in his 61, but when he was caught behind off Will Davis, Somerset had lost half their wickets for modest reward.
Thomas walked out with pressure on his young shoulders. But Bartlett began a recovery, reaching his fifty by hitting off-spinner George Rhodes back over his head for six.
Local product Thomas struck the ball with increasing authority as the pair brought up a hundred stand in 110 balls.
The teenager moved confidently
TONS: Somerset batsman George Bartlett cuts a delivery on his way to 108 and, far right, Lewis Hill celebrates reaching three figures to his half-century off 63 deliveries, with five fours and a six.
Bartlett was playing some majestic shots and brought up his hundred off 84 balls.
Thomas then clouted successive sixes off Mike before losing his middle stump to the next delivery and departing to a standing ovation.
When Bartlett was out in the final over, he had made the highest score by a Somerset number six in List A cricket, beating the 106 made by Ian Botham against Hampshire in 1981.
Leicestershire began by moving to 49 in the ninth over before Harry Swindells got a leading edge to Sonny Baker and skied a catch to backward point.
Rhodes fell lbw to Josh Davey for a duck and Somerset looked to be taking a grip when Rishi Patel fell to Ned Leonard for 40, a first victim for the young seamer.
But Arron Lilley signalled his intentions with three sixes, including two in the same Leonard over, and Hill also looked in good touch.
Their entertaining stand of 61 in 6.2 overs ended when Lilley, on 39, clipped a catch to deep square off Baker with the total on 146.
Hill went to his fifty off 53 balls and he greeted the introduction of Thomas into the attack with a six over mid-wicket.
Kimber helped keep the required run-rate at around six and a half an over and the pair brought up a century stand in 14 overs.
A big six over deep square off de Lange took Kimber to a 46-ball fifty and he celebrated by clearing the ropes twice more in the same over, the 39th, which cost 29 runs.
It only remained for Hill to reach a chanceless hundred.
Kimber fell to a big shot late on and his partner followed, but the outcome had been settled. Leicestershire skipper and centurion Hill said: “We thought around 300 or 310 was a par score, but the pitch just kept getting better to bat on.
“The way Bartlett and Thomas batted for Somerset gave us hope that we could come up with something similar. “I’m pleased with my form this season.
“It is something I have been threatening for a few years, but the great thing today was that, although I got out near the end, which can happen, I got the team virtually across the line. “My parents and family were here. I think they were sat in a sun trap and may have got burned, but hopefully it was worth it!”
Somerset debutant George Thomas said: “I was nervous to start with, but George Bartlett was already batting well and was a brilliant partner in taking pressure off me.
“It was a good pitch and they had bowled well to start with to take five wickets.
“My mum and dad were here and I think they were more nervous than I was!”