Essex Eagles v Kent Spitfires
Vitality Blast
The Cloud County Ground
Tuesday 07 June, 7pm start
Essex Eagles are looking to return to winning ways and have named a 13-man squad for the visit of Kent Spitfires to The Cloud County Ground this Tuesday for the latest edition of the Battle of the Bridge.
Simon Harmer’s side opened their T20 campaign to the Spitfires at Canterbury last month and successful chased down 185 to claim the bragging rights over the local rivals.
Since then there has been another victory, which came against Hampshire Hawks in the only T20 at Chelmsford so far this season, whilst defeats to Somerset and Glamorgan and a no result against Gloucestershire put the Eagles 6th in the table.
Squad:
Opposition:
Last year’s Champions haven’t had the best of starts in defending their T20 title, having lost their first five games consecutively. Last night, at the 6th time of asking, the Spitfires recorded their first victory, coming gainst Middlesex at Canterbury.
Joe Denly was the star of the show, scoring 110 from 58 balls which included 6 sixes and 9 fours to give Kent a score of 192-8 after their innings.
Middlesex never really got into a rhythm, with Steven Eskinazi top-scoring with 30. Jack Leaning was the pick of the Kent bowlers, taking 3/30 from his 4 overs to help his side to a 55-run victory.
Head to Head:
Last time out:
Essex Eagles faced their local rivals the Kent Spitfires at Canterbury in the opening game of the 2022 Vitality Blast. It was a successful trip for the Eagles as they completed a four wicket victory in the final over of the game.
The Spitfires decision at the toss to bat looked a good one as both openers played fluently throughout the powerplay. Daniel Bell-Drummond, however, fell shortly after the restrictions were lifted with the score on 62.
Spin was effective on the Canterbury pitch with Harmer following Nijjar in picking up the wicket of a Kent opener with Zac Crawley falling lbw for 40.
Nijjar and Ben Allison followed up with tight overs as the scoring rate slowed before Sams and Critchley, who was the pick of the Essex bowlers, took wickets in consecutive overs. This left Sam Billings and George Linde to carry the Kent total to 184-4 with some attacking shots in the closing overs.
In response, Essex’s chase started with a flurry of boundaries as the new opening partnership of Adam Rossington and Will Buttleman flourished.
The Eagles kept up with the scoring rate, but a steady flow of wickets left the Spitfires with a window of opportunity. However, the Paul Walter guided the team home with a nerveless 47 not out.
How to Watch:
There will be a Live Stream of the match from The Cloud County Ground available. You can watch the game via the Essex Cricket TV YouTube channel or the Essex Cricket Matchzone, which also includes a live scorecard, statistics and key clips of the action.
Access via the Essex Cricket Matchzone is available here.
Tickets:
There are a limited number of tickets still available for tomorrow night’s rerun of the Battle of the Bridge. You can purchase tickets via the button below.
