Punjab Kings all-rounder Sam Curran's five wickets helped Surrey successfully defend 195 against Somerset in their T20 Blast fixture at Taunton on Friday, June 16. It was a dominating performance by Surrey, who have now gone above their opponents in the South Group.
For Surrey, Will Jacks smashed an excellent 60 off 43 balls while Indian Premier League (IPL) veteran Chris Jordan hit a blistering 36 not out off just 12 to take their team's total to 195/9. From the other end, young somerset pacer Ben Green moved to the top of the wicket-takers charts with four wickets.
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It was always going to prove to be a tough total to chase down for the English side, against a bowling unit that had the likes of Sean Abbott, Sunil Narine, and Jordan, who complement Curran. He dismantled the top order, first forcing Will Smeed to hit the ball to deep cover and getting him caught before Tom Kohler-Cadmore fell courtesy of a brilliant catch by Gus Atkinson, giving Curran his second wicket.
Tom Banton went on to score his second fifty of the season off 33 balls, but his innings were ended, once again by Sam Curran after he mishit a drive to mid-off. In the same over, Sean Dickson was run out because of a mix-up with skipper Lewis Gregory, and then Gregory hit the ball to deep mid-wicket, just to find Atkinson and give Curran his fourth wicket.
Curran – who has been made an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours list – rounded off his fifer with the wicket of Craig Overton. He now has 12 wickets this season, making up for his inconsistency to shine with the bat. He has 252 runs, with an average of 28.
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