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Quartet progress in Twenty20

Author: Sir David Smith
Date: 01/08/2009

The quarter-finals of the Twenty20 Cup threw up some intriguing contests, although the weather ruled the roost on several occasions.

At the end of the week, the semi-final spots had been clinched by the Kent Spitfires, the Sussex Sharks, the Somerset Sabres and the Northamptonshire Steelbacks.

Sportsbook favourites Kent were the first to book their place for finals day at Edgbaston, beating the inclement weather that swept the country by beating the Durham Dynamos by 56 runs at Canterbury.

Robert Key and Joe Denly gave the home side a perfect start by putting on 69 for the first wicket, but the visitors hit back by taking wickets on a regular basis and only some late blows from Justin Kemp and Ryan McLaren ensured that Kent almost reached 150.

In reply, Durham were in deep trouble at 5-2 after Wayne Parnell got rid of both Phil Mustard and David Warner and they never recovered fully.

Dale Benkenstein gave some resistance with 47, but off-spinner James Tredwell took three wickets to ensure that Durham fell well short, being bowled out for a mere 93.

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Sussex were next to secure a semi-final spot, denying the Warwickshire Bears the chance to enjoy a day out on their home turf.

The Sharks made 152-9 from their 20 overs at Hove, with England all-rounder Luke Wright the top-scorer with a quickfire 38 at the top of the order.

The Bears' reply was all about one man, with Jonathan Trott making 56 out of a total of just 114 all out, taking his tally in the competition this season beyond the 500-run mark.

However, Trott's colleagues were unable to match his efforts, with Rory Hamilton-Brown the star for the Sharks with the ball, taking 4-15 from three overs to wrap up the victory.

The third quarter-final between the Lancashire Lightning and Somerset was ruined by persistent bad weather in the north-west which made play at Old Trafford impossible over three successive days.

Eventually the sides were forced to go into the indoor cricket school at the ground for a bowl-out.

The home side suffered a nightmare in the shootout, missing the stumps with nine of their ten attempts to lose out 5-1 overall, with a double success from Alfonso Thomas crucial for the Sabres.

The final last-eight tie, played at the second time of asking, saw Northants deny the Hampshire Hawks a chance to complete a double, following their FP Trophy final win last weekend.

The Steelbacks made 134-6 after being asked to bat first, with Andrew Hall contributing 39 from just 24 balls to keep his side in the game.

In reply the Hawks' much-vaunted batting line-up failed to fire and three wickets from Hall saw the visitors bowled out for 121, falling 14 runs short of victory.

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