Northamptonshire Steelbacks secured their place in the Vitality Blast final with a 17-run victory over reigning champions Somerset in the first semi-final at Edgbaston.
Batting first, the Steelbacks were dismissed for 143 runs in 19.2 overs. Jake Ball delivered an excellent bowling performance, taking 4 wickets for 17 runs in his four overs, including one maiden. Riley Meredith supported well with 3 wickets for 21 runs. Chris Lynn’s 39 off 26 deliveries was the highlight of the Northants innings, but their batting failed to build momentum against a disciplined Somerset bowling attack and sharp fielding.
Defending a modest total, Northants’ bowlers rose to the challenge and restricted Somerset to 126 for nine. Somerset stumbled early, losing three wickets for just 12 runs. Will Smeed fought back with a resilient 49 off 35 balls, but wickets from David Willey (3/21), Ben Sanderson (3/28), James Sales, and Calvin Harrison choked the chase, sealing the Steelbacks’ win.
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Northants will now await the winner of the Notts Outlaws and Hampshire match in the final. Notably, no team has ever retained the Blast title in its 24-year history.
Somerset’s decision to bowl first initially paid dividends, with early dismissals including Ricardo Vasconcelos and Nathan McSweeney, both given lbw after successful reviews by Craig Overton and Riley Meredith. However, Chris Lynn struggled to get going, facing only two balls in 22 minutes before falling cheaply.
Lynn and Saif Zaib added a 65-run partnership for the middle order, but once Lynn was bowled by Ball, Somerset’s innings faltered. Zaib fell for 26, while wickets continued to tumble due to tight bowling and excellent fielding from the Steelbacks.
Northants’ bowlers set the tone early with the prized wicket of Tom Banton, who edged the first ball he faced to the keeper. Somerset’s fragile start continued with dismissals of Thomas Rew and James Rew, leaving the hosts 12 for three within just 17 balls.
Will Smeed’s explosive hitting—including a powerplay over that yielded 28 runs—gave Somerset hope. He and Tom Kohler-Cadmore put together a 62-run partnership, rebuilding the innings after the early setbacks. However, Smeed’s dismissal broke momentum, and subsequent wickets fell at crucial times.
In the tense final overs, David Willey was instrumental with the ball, taking key wickets and turning the pressure on Somerset. Despite a tight spell from Luke Procter at the death, the late surge from Ben Sanderson’s last over proved too costly for Somerset to overcome.
Reflecting on the defeat, Somerset head coach Jason Kerr said, “We are incredibly disappointed. At halfway through our innings, we were in a promising position, but the batting let us down in the second half. We struggled to maintain momentum and lost wickets at critical moments.”
He added, “Credit must go to Northants. Their plan to focus on yorkers worked well, and Calvin Harrison bowled impressively. Coming in, our aim was to retain the trophy after our strong performance on Wednesday, but today we simply didn’t play to the level required.”