# 2018 T20 Blast

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. 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.

## Competition format

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. 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.

## North Group
### Table

| 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 |

### July

* 4 July 2018 (D/N) Scorecard
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks 218/3 (20 overs) | 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)
* Durham Jets won the toss and elected to field.
* Harry Brook and Jonathan Tattersall (Yorkshire Vikings) made their T20 debuts
* 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 | Northamptonshire Steelbacks 161 (17.3 overs) |
| 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
### Table

| 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 |

### July

* 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)
* Surrey won the toss and elected to bat.
* Jamie Smith and Will Jacks (Surrey) made their T20 debuts

## Knockout stage

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

### Quarter-finals

* 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 | Nottinghamshire Outlaws 190 (20 overs) |
| 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
### Semi-finals

* 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

* 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.

## Personnel

| Team | Coach | Captain | Overseas Player(s) |
| Birmingham Bears | Jim Troughton | Grant Elliott | Jeetan Patel Colin de Grandhomme |
| Derbyshire Falcons | John Wright | Gary Wilson | Wahab Riaz Lockie Ferguson Henry Nicholls |
| Durham Jets | Jon Lewis | Tom Latham | Tom Latham Imran Tahir |
| Essex Eagles | Anthony McGrath | Ryan ten Doeschate | Neil Wagner Adam Zampa Peter Siddle |
| Glamorgan | Robert Croft | Colin Ingram | Usman Khawaja Shaun Marsh Joe Burns |
| Gloucestershire | Richard Dawson | Michael Klinger | Michael Klinger Andrew Tye Thisara Perera |
| Hampshire | Craig White | James Vince | Colin Munro Mujeeb Ur Rahman Dale Steyn |
| Kent Spitfires | Matt Walker | Sam Billings | Adam Milne Marcus Stoinis Carlos Brathwaite |
| Lancashire Lightning | Glen Chapple | Liam Livingstone | Joe Mennie James Faulkner Zahir Khan |
| Leicestershire Foxes | Paul Nixon | Colin Ackermann | Mohammad Abbas Mohammad Nabi |
| Middlesex | Daniel Vettori | Dawid Malan | Hilton Cartwright Ashton Agar Dwayne Bravo |
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks | David Ripley | Alex Wakely | Rory Kleinveldt Seekuge Prasanna |
| Nottinghamshire Outlaws | Peter Moores | Dan Christian | Dan Christian Ish Sodhi |
| Somerset | Andy Hurry | Lewis Gregory | Corey Anderson Jerome Taylor |
| Surrey | Michael Di Venuto | Jade Dernbach | Aaron Finch Nic Maddinson |
| Sussex Sharks | Jason Gillespie | Luke Wright | Rashid Khan Tom Bruce |
| Worcestershire Rapids | Kevin Sharp | Moeen Ali | Travis Head Martin Guptill Callum Ferguson Wayne Parnell |
| Yorkshire Vikings | Andrew Gale | Steven Patterson | Kane Williamson |

## Statistics
### Most runs

| 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 |
| Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | Source: ESPNCricInfo | |

### Most wickets

| 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 |
| Source: ESPNCricinfo ||||||||