Kent capitulated with bat and ball at Lord’s in this Natwest T20 Blast match as hosts Middlesex won by 115 runs.

They posted their highest T20 score against Kent and also their highest T20 score at Lord’s – Kent posting their lowest T20 score v Middlesex.

Coming into the game Kent had won their opening two fixtures in the shortest form of the game whilst Middlesex had lost their sole game played thus far.

Winning the toss for the ninth time in eleven T20 games against Kent, Middlesex elected to bat first in the late afternoon sunshine in front of a bumper 13,500 crowd with the hosts showing their intent from the off to maximise the opening six over power-play to their advantage.

Opening batsman Paul Stirling was the star of the show with the bat, smashing ninety from only fifty deliveries with six fours and seven sixes and was ably supported by England’s one-day Captain Eoin Morgan who contributed fifty-four from only twenty-seven deliveries and only Mitch Claydon came away from Lord’s unscathed from the brutal onslaught, bowling tidily and seeing his allotted overs go for only twenty-four runs.

Middlesex amassed 51/2 in the six-over power-play as Darren Stevens took the wicket of Dawid Malan (11) caught behind by Billings with his first ball and Calum Haggett got Nick Compton (5) cheaply.

Together came Stirling and Eoin Morgan who assisted in taking Adam Riley’s opening over for twenty-one runs and soon after Stirling secured his half century off only thirty-one balls with the hosts then posting their century in the tenth over (Stirling 63no).

Stirling and Morgan continued unabated taking apart Kent’s poor bowling – It was too short and inviting for the batsmen who really maximised their opportunities however Stirling finally went having accumulated greatly – out for 90 – in the fourteenth over (153/3) and in the next Morgan brought up his half-century off only twenty-five balls.

With the loss of Stirling and Morgan (54), Kent managed to curb the runs in the latter stage of the innings – Middlesex bringing up their two-hundred with only two balls remaining with the innings closing on 205/5.

Early on in the Kent reply it was clear the hosts’ total would prove, at most, difficult. Daniel Bell-Drummond, after successive boundaries, was out in only the third over (14) and from the first ball in the next over his opening partner Joe Denly (6) was cleaned up by Steven Finn – two wickets in three balls as the visitors were 20/2.

Matt Coles, promoted up the order, hit debutant South African Kyle Abbott’s first ball for six and joined by captain Sam Northeast, added useful and quick runs to boost the score to 44/2 at the power-play – Despite a slow start in comparison to the hosts, Kent were only just behind the rate as Middlesex were 51/2 at the same stage – Although the Spitfires were unable to make the impression on the scoreboard as they wanted losing wickets all to often to a much more disciplined bowling display.

James Franklin’s bowling spell proved decisive as he changed his pace time and time again with the visitors unable to deal with the slower balls in particular and on two occasions Franklin had hat-trick opportunities – Firstly he had Northeast (20) followed by the unsuccessful promotion of Coles (11), Kent 56/4, and two over later Stevens (3) holed out to long-off. Blake, who proved to be last week’s match-winner, was unable to repeat the feat as he fell for five and Billings followed the ball later out for 11 with the Spitfires 78/7.

The chase to 206 was academic now with the Spitfires looking for respectability but Middlesex sensed blood and continued in the same vein as Stirling followed up his fine batting display to bowl Haggett (2) and in the fifteenth over spin bowler Nathan Sowter picked up the final two wickets as Claydon went down the wicket but missed the ball and was duly stumped (2) and two balls later Cowdrey was the last man edging Sowter to wicket-keeper John Simpson (5) – Kent all out for a mere 90.

Kent will have the best remedy to bounce-back quickly as they host Surrey at The County Ground, Beckenham only 24 hours later to put right what went so wrong tonight at Lord’s.

 

Teams:

Middlesex: Stirling, Malan, Compton, Morgan, Burns, Franklin, Simpson, Roland-Jones, Abbott, Sowter, Finn

Kent: Bell-Drummond, Denly, Northeast, Billings, Stevens, Cowdrey, Blake, Coles, Haggett, Riley, Claydon

Scores:

Middlesex: 205 (Stirling 90, Morgan 54; Stevens 2/44)

Kent: 90 (Northeast 20; Franklin 5/21, Sowter 2/2)

Middlesex (2pts) beat Kent Spitfires (0) by 115 runs.