2018 T20 Blast

2018 Vitality Blast
Dates4 July 2018 (2018-07-04) – 15 September 2018 (2018-09-15)
Administrator(s)England and Wales Cricket Board
Cricket formatTwenty20
Tournament format(s)Group stage and knockout
ChampionsWorcestershire Rapids (1st title)
Participants18
Matches133
Attendance931,455 (7,003 per match)
Most runsLaurie Evans (614)
Most wicketsPat Brown (31)
Official websiteVitality Blast
2017
2019

The 2018 Vitality Blast was the sixteenth edition of the T20 Blast currently known as the Vitality Blast, a professional Twenty20 cricket league in England and Wales. It was the first season in which the domestic T20 competition, run by the ECB, has been branded as the Vitality Blast due to a new sponsorship deal.[1] The league consisted of the 18 first-class county teams divided into two divisions of nine teams each with fixtures played between July and September. The final day took place at Edgbaston Cricket Ground in Birmingham on 15 September 2018.

Nottinghamshire Outlaws were the champions going into the tournament having beaten the Birmingham Bears by 22 runs in the 2017 final.[2]

Competition format

[edit]

The 18 first-class county cricket clubs are taking part in the competition. Teams are initially split into two divisions on a geographical basis (North and South) for the group stage of the competition, each group having nine teams. During the group stage, which ran from July until the middle of August, each county played 14 matches, playing six of the other sides in their group twice, once home and once away, and the other two teams once.[2] The winners of each match received two points for a win, with one point awarded in the case of a tie or if a match was abandoned. Teams are ranked within their groups by total points, then net run rate. At the end of the group stage, the top four teams from each group entered the knockout stage of the competition.

Teams

[edit]
Team Division Home grounds Coach Captain Overseas Player(s)
Birmingham Bears North Edgbaston, Birmingham England Jim Troughton New Zealand Grant Elliott New Zealand Jeetan Patel
New Zealand Colin de Grandhomme
Derbyshire Falcons North County Cricket Ground, Derby New Zealand John Wright Ireland Gary Wilson Pakistan Wahab Riaz
New Zealand Lockie Ferguson
New Zealand Henry Nicholls
Durham Jets North Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street England Jon Lewis New Zealand Tom Latham New Zealand Tom Latham
South Africa Imran Tahir
Essex Eagles South County Cricket Ground, Chelmsford England Anthony McGrath Netherlands Ryan ten Doeschate New Zealand Neil Wagner
Australia Adam Zampa
Australia Peter Siddle
Glamorgan South Sophia Gardens, Cardiff Wales Robert Croft South Africa Colin Ingram Australia Usman Khawaja
Australia Shaun Marsh
Australia Joe Burns
Gloucestershire South Bristol County Ground
College Ground, Cheltenham
England Richard Dawson Australia Michael Klinger Australia Michael Klinger
Australia Andrew Tye
Sri Lanka Thisara Perera
Hampshire South Rose Bowl, Southampton England Craig White England James Vince New Zealand Colin Munro
Afghanistan Mujeeb Ur Rahman
South Africa Dale Steyn
Kent Spitfires South St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury
County Cricket Ground, Beckenham
England Matt Walker England Sam Billings New Zealand Adam Milne
Australia Marcus Stoinis
Cricket West Indies Carlos Brathwaite
Lancashire Lightning North Old Trafford, Manchester England Glen Chapple England Liam Livingstone Australia Joe Mennie
Australia James Faulkner
Afghanistan Zahir Khan
Leicestershire Foxes North Grace Road, Leicester England Paul Nixon South Africa Colin Ackermann Pakistan Mohammad Abbas
Afghanistan Mohammad Nabi
Middlesex South Lord's, London
Uxbridge Cricket Club Ground
Old Deer Park, Richmond, London
New Zealand Daniel Vettori England Dawid Malan Australia Hilton Cartwright
Australia Ashton Agar
Cricket West Indies Dwayne Bravo
Northamptonshire Steelbacks North County Cricket Ground, Northampton England David Ripley England Alex Wakely South Africa Rory Kleinveldt
Sri Lanka Seekuge Prasanna
Nottinghamshire Outlaws North Trent Bridge, Nottingham England Peter Moores Australia Dan Christian Australia Dan Christian
New Zealand Ish Sodhi
Somerset South County Ground, Taunton England Andy Hurry England Lewis Gregory New Zealand Corey Anderson
Cricket West Indies Jerome Taylor
Surrey South The Oval, London Australia Michael Di Venuto England Jade Dernbach Australia Aaron Finch
Australia Nic Maddinson
Sussex Sharks South County Cricket Ground, Hove Australia Jason Gillespie England Luke Wright Afghanistan Rashid Khan
New Zealand Tom Bruce
Worcestershire Rapids North New Road, Worcester England Kevin Sharp England Moeen Ali Australia Travis Head
New Zealand Martin Guptill
Australia Callum Ferguson
South Africa Wayne Parnell
Yorkshire Vikings North Headingley, Leeds England Andrew Gale England Steven Patterson New Zealand Kane Williamson

North Group

[edit]

Table

[edit]

Pos Team Pld W L T NR Ded Pts NRR
1 Worcestershire Rapids 14 9 4 0 1 0 19 0.595
2 Durham Jets 14 9 4 0 1 0 19 0.556
3 Lancashire Lightning 14 8 5 0 1 0 17 0.683
4 Nottinghamshire Outlaws 14 8 6 0 0 0 16 0.073
5 Yorkshire Vikings 14 7 7 0 0 0 14 −0.035
6 Birmingham Bears 14 6 7 1 0 0 13 0.033
7 Derbyshire Falcons 14 5 7 0 2 0 12 −0.047
8 Leicestershire Foxes 14 5 8 0 1 0 11 −0.380
9 Northamptonshire Steelbacks 14 2 11 1 0 0 5 −1.398
Source: BBC Sport[3]

Fixtures

[edit]

July

[edit]
4 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
v
Leicestershire Foxes
219/6 (19.4 overs)
Ben Duckett 96 (54)
Callum Parkinson 1/25 (3 overs)
Colin Ackermann 66* (31)
Ben Sanderson 2/47 (4 overs)
Leicestershire Foxes won by 4 wickets
County Ground, Northampton
Umpires: David Millns and Jeff Evans
Player of the match: Ben Duckett (Northants Steelbacks)
  • Leicestershire Foxes won the toss and elected to field.

4 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Nottinghamshire Outlaws
155/7 (20 overs)
v
Birmingham Bears
159/2 (17.2 overs)
Riki Wessels 41 (29)
Colin de Grandhomme 2/24 (4 overs)
Ian Bell 82* (57)
Harry Gurney 1/26 (2.2 overs)
Birmingham Bears won by 8 wickets
Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Umpires: Mike Burns and Steve O'Shaughnessy
Player of the match: Ian Bell (Birmingham Bears)
  • Birmingham Bears won the toss and elected to field.
  • Henry Brookes (Birmingham Bears) made his T20 debut

5 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Yorkshire Vikings
200/3 (20 overs)
v
Durham Jets
156/4 (20 overs)
Adam Lyth 92* (54)
Ryan Pringle 1/17 (2 overs)
Ben Stokes 90* (68)
Jack Brooks 3/21 (4 overs)
Yorkshire Vikings won by 44 runs
Headingley, Leeds
Umpires: Jeff Evans and Paul Baldwin
Player of the match: Adam Lyth (Yorkshire Vikings)

5 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Lancashire Lightning
188/6 (20 overs)
v
Worcestershire Rapids
190/5 (19.5 overs)
Keaton Jennings 50 (33)
George Rhodes 2/27 (3 overs)
Joe Clarke 42 (24)
Jordan Clark 2/26 (2.5 overs)
Worcestershire Rapids won by 5 wickets
Old Trafford, Manchester
Umpires: Mike Burns and Peter Hartley
Player of the match: Brett D'Oliveira (Worcestershire Rapids)
  • Lancashire Lightning won the toss and elected to bat.

6 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Worcestershire Rapids
192/7 (20 overs)
v
Birmingham Bears
188/9 (20 overs)
Martin Guptill 51 (40)
Henry Brookes 2/28 (4 overs)
Sam Hain 70 (44)
Pat Brown 3/28 (4 overs)
Worcestershire Rapids won by 4 runs
New Road, Worcester
Umpires: Jeff Evans and Paul Pollard
Player of the match: Pat Brown (Worcestershire Rapids)
  • Birmingham Bears won the toss and elected to field.

6 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Nottinghamshire Outlaws
219/6 (20 overs)
v
Dan Christian 113* (40)
Ben Sanderson 2/41 (4 overs)
Ben Duckett 88 (45)
Luke Fletcher 3/21 (3 overs)
Nottinghamshire Outlaws won by 58 runs
County Ground, Northampton
Umpires: Graham Lloyd and Paul Baldwin
Player of the match: Dan Christian (Nottinghamshire Outlaws)
  • Northamptonshire Steelbacks won the toss and elected to field.
  • Will Fraine (Nottinghamshire Outlaws) made his T20 debut

6 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Durham Jets
153/7 (20 overs)
v
Leicestershire Foxes
120 (18.3 overs)
Paul Collingwood 36 (33)
Zak Chappell 3/23 (4 overs)
Neil Dexter 35 (32)
Imran Tahir 4/14 (4 overs)
Durham Jets won by 33 runs
Grace Road, Leicester
Umpires: Ben Debenham and Peter Hartley
Player of the match: Imran Tahir (Durham Jets)
  • Leicestershire Foxes won the toss and elected to field.

South Group

[edit]

Table

[edit]

Pos Team Pld W L T NR Ded Pts NRR
1 Somerset 14 10 4 0 0 0 20 0.786
2 Kent Spitfires 14 8 2 0 4 0 20 0.627
3 Sussex Sharks 14 7 3 0 4 0 18 0.737
4 Gloucestershire 14 8 4 0 2 0 18 0.381
5 Surrey 14 7 5 0 2 0 16 0.989
6 Glamorgan 14 7 6 0 1 0 15 −0.144
7 Essex Eagles 14 2 8 1 3 0 8 −1.035
8 Hampshire 14 2 9 1 2 0 7 −0.824
9 Middlesex 14 2 12 0 0 0 4 −1.128
Source: BBC Sport[3]

Fixtures

[edit]

July

[edit]
4 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Sussex Sharks
181/6 (20 overs)
v
Essex Eagles
145 (19.4 overs)
Laurie Evans 61 (45)
Jamie Porter 2/26 (4 overs)
Varun Chopra 64 (48)
David Wiese 5/24 (4 overs)
Sussex Sharks won by 36 runs
County Ground, Chelmsford
Umpires: Ben Debenham and Graham Lloyd
Player of the match: David Wiese (Sussex Sharks)
  • Sussex Sharks won the toss and elected to bat.
  • Sam Cook (Essex Eagles) made his T20 debut

5 July 2018 (D/N)
Scorecard
Surrey
158/6 (20 overs)
v
Middlesex
161/7 (19 overs)
Rikki Clarke 50 (25)
Paul Stirling 3/26 (4 overs)
Paul Stirling 66 (36)
Gareth Batty 2/18 (4 overs)
Middlesex won by 3 wickets
Lord's, London
Umpires: David Millns and Neil Bainton
Player of the match: Paul Stirling (Middlesex)

Knockout stage

[edit]
Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
         
N1 Worcestershire Rapids 137/5
S4 Gloucestershire 136/8
N1 Worcestershire Rapids 169/6
N3 Lancashire Lightning 149/9
N3 Lancashire Lightning 134/4
S2 Kent Spitfires 133/9
N1 Worcestershire Rapids 158/5
S3 Sussex Sharks 157/6
N2 Durham Jets 140/7
S3 Sussex Sharks 144/5
S3 Sussex Sharks 202/8
S1 Somerset 167/8
N4 Nottinghamshire Outlaws 190
S1 Somerset 209/5

Quarter-finals

[edit]
23 August (D/N)
Scorecard
Kent Spitfires (H)
133/9 (20 overs)
v
Lancashire Lightning
134/4 (18.4 overs)
Sam Billings 37 (37)
Matt Parkinson 3/27 (4 overs)
Keaton Jennings 46 (40)
Imran Qayyum 2/17 (4 overs)
Lancashire Lightning won by 6 wickets
St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury
Umpires: Mike Burns (Eng) and Alex Wharf (Eng)
Player of the match: Matt Parkinson (Lancashire Lightning)
  • Kent Spitfires won the toss and elected to bat.

24 August (D/N)
Scorecard
Durham Jets (H)
140/7 (20 overs)
v
Sussex Sharks
144/5 (18.2 overs)
Ben Stokes 34 (24)
Will Beer 2/17 (4 overs)
Laurie Evans 63* (47)
Mark Wood 2/25 (4 overs)
Sussex Sharks won by 5 wickets
Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street
Umpires: David Millns (Eng) and Martin Saggers (Eng)
Player of the match: Laurie Evans (Sussex Sharks)
  • Durham Jets won the toss and elected to bat.

25 August
Scorecard
Gloucestershire
136/8 (20 overs)
v
Worcestershire Rapids (H)
137/5 (18.4 overs)
Miles Hammond 45 (31)
Brett D'Oliveira 4/26 (4 overs)
Callum Ferguson 64* (47)
Benny Howell 2/22 (4 overs)
Worcestershire Rapids won by 5 wickets
New Road, Worcester
Umpires: Nick Cook (Eng) and Graham Lloyd (Eng)
Player of the match: Callum Ferguson (Worcestershire Rapids)
  • Worcestershire Rapids won the toss and elected to field.

26–27 August
Scorecard
Somerset (H)
209/5 (20 overs)
v
Lewis Gregory 60* (24)
Samit Patel 1/16 (3 overs)
Alex Hales 45 (28)
Jamie Overton 5/47 (4 overs)
Somerset won by 19 runs
County Ground, Taunton
Umpires: Neil Mallender (Eng) and Steve O'Shaughnessy (Eng)
Player of the match: Lewis Gregory (Somerset)
  • Nottinghamshire Outlaws won the toss and elected to field.

Finals Day

[edit]

Semi-finals

[edit]
15 September
11:00
Scorecard
Worcestershire Rapids
169/6 (20 overs)
v
Lancashire Lightning
149/9 (20 overs)
Ben Cox 55* (34)
Matt Parkinson 2/23 (4 overs)
Keaton Jennings 51* (40)
Patrick Brown 4/21 (4 overs)
Worcestershire Rapids won by 20 runs
Edgbaston, Birmingham
Umpires: David Millns (Eng) and Martin Saggers (Eng)
Player of the match: Ben Cox (Worcestershire Rapids)
  • Lancashire Lightning won the toss and elected to field.
15 September
14:30
Scorecard
Sussex Sharks
202/8 (20 overs)
v
Somerset
167/8 (20 overs)
Luke Wright 92 (53)
Jerome Taylor 4/20 (4 overs)
Tom Abell 48 (29)
Jofra Archer 3/32 (4 overs)
Sussex Sharks won by 35 runs
Edgbaston, Birmingham
Umpires: Mike Burns (Eng) and Alex Wharf (Eng)
Player of the match: Luke Wright (Sussex Sharks)
  • Sussex Sharks won the toss and elected to bat.

Final

[edit]
15 September
18:45 (D/N)
Scorecard
Sussex Sharks
157/6 (20 overs)
v
Worcestershire Rapids
158/5 (18.3 overs)
Laurie Evans 52 (44)
Moeen Ali 3/30 (4 overs)
Ben Cox 46* (27)
Danny Briggs 2/19 (4 overs)
Worcestershire Rapids won by 5 wickets
Edgbaston, Birmingham, Warwickshire
Umpires: Martin Saggers (Eng) and Alex Wharf (Eng)
Player of the match: Ben Cox (Worcestershire Rapids)
  • Sussex Sharks won the toss and elected to bat.

Statistics

[edit]

Most runs

[edit]
Player Team Mat Inns Runs SR HS 100 50
Laurie Evans Sussex Sharks 15 14 614 135.84 96 0 7
Aaron Finch Surrey 9 9 589 182.35 131* 2 3
Ian Bell Birmingham Bears 14 14 580 139.09 131 1 4
[4] Source: ESPNCricInfo

Most wickets

[edit]
Player Team Mat Wkts Ave Econ BBI SR
Pat Brown Worcestershire Rapids 16 31 13.35 7.64 4/21 10.4
Matthew Parkinson Lancashire Lightning 15 25 16.60 7.32 3/19 13.6
Jamie Overton Somerset 16 24 22.50 10.25 5/47 13.1
[5] Source: ESPNCricinfo

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Vitality announced as new title partner for T20 cricket". England and Wales Cricket Board. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Kia Super League & Vitality Blast Tickets on Sale". England and Wales Cricket Board. 1 March 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  3. ^ a b "NatWest T20 Blast Tables". BBC Sport. 16 October 2018. Archived from the original on 6 November 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  4. ^ "Cricket Records | Records | Vitality Blast, 2018 | | Most runs | ESPNcricinfo". Cricinfo. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Cricket Records | Records | Vitality Blast, 2018 | | Most wickets | ESPNcricinfo". Cricinfo. Retrieved 16 September 2018.