Vitality T20 Blast 2024: July 18 Match Review - Players' Stats, Scorecards, Performances, and More

Five games of the ongoing Vitality Blast 2024 were held on July 18. Almost every game went down to the wire as the sides put in excellent performances in order to register brilliant wins to their name and grab some much-needed points. Two games were played in the North Group, whereas three matches were in the South Group. 

The first North Group game was between Worcestershire and Derbyshire. Batting first, Worcestershire posted a total of 169 runs in the first innings. Ed Pollock was the highest run-getter for his side, with 67 runs to his name in 47 deliveries. As for Derbyshire, Pat Brown impressed with his spell of (4/23). During the run chase, Derbyshire managed to chase down the target, thanks to Wayne Madsen and Ross Whiteley who scored 44 and 41 runs, respectively, as Derbyshire won the game by five wickets. 

In the South Group, one of the Vitality Blast 2024 games was between Gloucestershire and Middlesex. The game saw Gloucestershire bat first. Cameron Bancroft scored 87 runs in 54 deliveries as the side posted a total of 179 runs in the first innings. Apart from Bancroft, another notable performance which garnered immense limelight was Surrey's Sam Curran who blasted Hampshire en route to his maiden unbeaten century (102* off 58 balls) knock in the marquee tournament.

As for Middlesex, Ryan Higgins and Luke Hollman took two wickets each in the first innings. Aiming to chase the target, Middlesex barely missed out on the run chase. Leus du Plooy went unbeaten by 73 runs, but still, the side lost the game by 10 runs.

Brief Scores:

North Group:

Worcestershire vs Derbyshire

Worcestershire: 169/8 in 20 overs [Ed Pollock  67(57),  Ethan Brookes 30 (19); Harry Darley 2/26 (4), Ethan Brookes 1/24 (4)]

Derbyshire: 170/5 in 20 overs [Wayne Madsen 44 (40), Ross Whiteley 41* (22); Pat Brown 4/23 (4), Zak Chappell 2/28 (3)]

Northamptonshire vs Birmingham Bears

Northamptonshire: 197/6 in 20 overs [Saif Zaib 86(41), Lewis McManus 22 (10); David Willey 2/34 (4), Ravi Bopara 1/27 (3)]

Birmingham Bears: 186/6 in 20 overs [Sam Hain 93 (60), Jacob Bethell 50(31); Danny Briggs 2/38 (4), George Garton 1/6 (2)]

South Group

Gloucestershire vs Middlesex

Gloucestershire: 179/8 in 20 overs [Cameron Bancroft 87(54), Miles Hammond 30 (21); Matt Taylor 2/17 (4), Oliver Price 1/14 (2)]

Middlesex: 169/7 in 20 overs [Leus du Plooy 73* (52), Martin Andersson 49(39); Ryan Higgins 2/25 (4), Luke Hollman 2/37 (4)]

Sussex vs Somerset

Sussex: 158/9 in 20 overs [Harrison Ward 39(23), James Coles 26 (19); Tymal Mills 2/28 (4), Danny Lamb 1/20 (2)]

Somerset: 162/4 in 17.4 overs [Tom Abell 47* (34), George Thomas 42(30); Ben Green 4/17 (3), Jack Leach 1/24 (3)]

Hampshire vs Surrey

Hampshire: 183/10 in 19.5 overs [Toby Albert 66(45), James Vince 23 (11); John Turner 2/30 (4), Brad Wheal 2/42 (4)]

Surrey: 188/5 in 19.1 overs [Sam Curran 102* (58), Dom Sibley 27(24); Jordan Clark 3/24 (3), Tom Lawes 1/21 (2)]