The Vitality Blast 2025 delivers another thrilling T20 fixture on July 6.
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Vitality Blast 2025 South Group Match Somerset vs Essex Eagles – Cricket Betting Tips and Match Predictions – July 8
Somerset vs Essex, Match 89, Vitality Blast
Tom Kohler-Cadmore smashed a brilliant half century to propel Somerset to a convincing 95-run victory over Essex Eagles at the Cooper Associates Ground and guarantee the runaway South Group leaders a place in the quarter-finals of the Vitality Blast.
In scintillating form beneath the Taunton floodlights, the 30-year-old right hander staged a breathtaking innings of 90 from just 39 balls, striking 8 fours and 7 sixes and dominating stands of 88 and 55 with Will Smeed and Tom Abell for the second and third wickets respectively as Somerset ran up an imposing 225-6 after Essex had won the toss. Smeed scored 32, Sean Dickson weighed in with 28 not out and, amid the carnage, Mohammad Amir emerged as the only Essex bowler to escape punishment, the Pakistan international returning stand-out figures of 3-22 from four overs.
Undermined by overseas bowlers Matt Henry and Riley Meredith, who claimed 4-21 and 2-22 respectively, the Essex chase came up well short as the visitors were dismissed for 130 in 14.1 overs, Noah Thain top-scoring with 38. This latest victory moves Somerset 12 points clear of nearest rivals Surrey, while Essex remain rooted to the foot of the South Group after suffering a ninth defeat in 11 games.
Tom Banton looked as though he meant business, plundering three boundaries at the expense of debutant Charlie Bennett to move to 15 in quick time, only to then chip Mohammad Amir to mid-on in the third over as Somerset lost their first wicket with 21 on the board. There was no loss of momentum though, Kohler-Cadmore and Smeed taking 16 off the next over, sent down by Noah Thain, while Bennett again proved expensive when switching to the River End and Paul Walter conceded 19 off the sixth as Somerset raced to 67-1 by the end of the powerplay.
Essex turned to spin in an attempt to stem the flow, but Kohler-Cadmore continued to trade in boundaries, smiting a brace of sixes off successive deliveries from Matt Critchley and then straight hitting Luc Benkenstein for another to raise a blistering 24-ball half century in the grand manner.
The visitors did little to help themselves, Bennett dropping Smeed on 20 at deep mid-wicket off the bowling of Critchley as the 8th over hemorrhaged 20 runs. Smeed had contributed 32 to a stand of 88 from 44 balls when he hit Benkenstein to long-off as the home side reached halfway on 114-2.
There was no let-up in the scoring rate, Kohler-Cadmore applying further pressure by hoisting Benkenstein for a towering six over long-off as the Essex bowling wilted in the face of heavy firepower. Kohler-Cadmore was within 10 runs of what would have been a magnificent hundred when a loss of concentration saw him hit Simon Harmer high to long-off to afford Essex overdue relief.
Critchley removed Abell for 20, but there was precious little breathing space for the visitors, Sean Dickson and Lewis Gregory picking up the cudgels in a stand of 28 from 12 balls. Dickson was still there at the end, unbeaten on 28 made from 17 balls.
Required to score at 12.5 an over, Essex made a decent enough start, Walter taking Craig Overton for a six and a brace of fours in a first over that yielded 15 runs. But Meredith redressed the balance, clean bowling the swinging Michael Pepper with 28 on the board in the third.
Somerset struck another blow in the next over, Ben Green taking a startling diving catch at long-on to send back Jordan Cox and give Henry a wicket on his final appearance before returning to New Zealand, while Meredith accounted for Charlie Allison. Henry then struck twice in three balls, removing Walter for 24 and Benkenstein without scoring to reduce Essex to 48-5, their prospects of pulling off an unlikely victory in tatters before the powerplay had even ended.
Critchley was then run out by Abell’s direct hit and Lewis Goldsworthy had Robin Das held on the deep mid-wicket boundary with the score 81-7 as the home side exerted a vice-like grip on proceedings. Only Thain attempted to carry the fight to Somerset, the England Under-19 international crashing a four and 4 sixes in a defiant innings of 38 off 17 balls. His dismissal – caught by Henry at long-on off the bowling of Overton – signaled the end of meaningful Essex resistance.
Somerset batsman Tom Kohler-Cadmore said: “That was a real team performance and a great win for us. I think that puts us into the quarter-finals, which is great. We had partnerships all the way down and then did really well with the ball and produced a nice fielding display. The groundsmen produce absolutely belting pitches here week in and week out and it’s just a pleasure to bat on them. I’m lucky to be able to bat on these surfaces and the wind helped me as well in this game. Will Smeed has taken his game to a different level this year and the partnership we put together was a really important one. He puts the bowlers under so much pressure when he’s on strike, that it seems like they’re giving me easier balls. He’s adapted his game to be able to rotate, and that’s something Tom Abell also did really well tonight in what was another big partnership. You look to bring in world class overseas stars and Matt Henry and Riley Meredith have raised standards this season. They add a lot both on and off the pitch and their experience has helped us win so many games. They were both outstanding once again.”
Essex skipper Simon Harmer said: “That’s the story of our season – we just weren’t able to put together the performance we wanted to. We produced some of the best fielding I’ve seen against Surrey in the last match, but were pretty dismal today. We created enough chances really, but failed to make the most of them and paid the price for some pretty poor fielding. The only way you stop teams like Somerset from building momentum is to take wickets, but it makes it even more difficult when you’re not taking your catches. When your chasing a total of more than 200, you have to go for it from the off. Matt Henry and Riley Meredith are class players and they made it very difficult for us to do that. We’ve tried several different combinations at the top of the order this season, but none of them have really worked for us. I was happy with the way the boys further down the order kept going, but this was not our day.”
© Cricket World 2025
Vitality Blast 2025 Stats: Runs, Wickets and 6’s
Batting Stats T20
Wicket Takers T20
Most 6’s T20
