
Dramatic wins for Somerset and Surrey in T20 Blast
Hosts edge Taunton thriller
After being asked to bat first at Taunton, Stephen Eskinazi (17 from 12) and Kane Williamson (28 from 17) gave Middlesex a solid platform, reaching 52-2 from 34 balls, a platform which Holden and Geddes built upon.The pair added 100 for the third wicket from the next 47 deliveries, with Geddes smashing five sixes in a 25-ball half-century and Holden following suit a little later from 30 balls, with five fours and one maximum.Geddes eventually departed for a career-best 69 from 32 balls, trying for his eighth six, only to miscue Riley Meredith to Matt Henry at long-off.Leus du Plooy followed from the next ball, caught in the deep but Ryan Higgins cracked the hat-trick ball to the deep square boundary.Meredith got his revenge at the end of the 19th over, having Higgins caught behind for 11, to finish with 4-46.Holden finished unbeaten on 87 from 47 balls, with a dozen fours and a six, while Jack Davies hit a six off Ben Green in the final over - Middlesex's 12th of the innings - as the visitors posted 229-5.Somerset began positively but lost Will Smeed, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Tom Banton and it was 88-4 in the ninth over when Tom Abell slog-swept a boundary catch off Luke Hollman to depart for 24.But Dickson, back from a broken finger, moved to a 24-ball half-century with a reverse-sweep for six off Zafar Gohar. Gregory was then caught off a Hollman no-ball as 18 came off the 13th over and the home side still had hope.Dickson smashed Noah Cornwell for a straight six and Gregory rode his luck further when dropped on the boundary by Du Plooy off Gohar, hitting three sixes in the same over. After Dickson holed out to long-off for 76 from 38 balls to end a 104-run stand in nine overs, the Somerset skipper hit his fifth maximum to bring up a 21-ball half-century.Ben Green was dropped by Du Plooy again off Tom Helm in the penultimate over before another Gregory six completed a remarkable victory.
More to follow.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mail
6 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Ex-Arsenal star sentenced last month for part in £600k drug smuggling plot signs for new team
A former Arsenal academy star has already been picked up by a new team - just a month after he was handed a four-year prison sentence for his role in a drug smuggle plot. The player came through the ranks at the north London club, before going on loan at a number of Football League sides such as Blackpool, Doncaster Rovers, and Cardiff before leaving the Gunners. He had stints at a number of clubs in England, Scotland and even India and Thailand, before joining Greenock Morton, where he was later sacked after his arrest back in September last year. The player in question, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, had been arrested after an estimated £600,000 worth of cannabis was seized while being brought through Stansted Airport by two women, one of whom was his girlfriend. Though Emmanuel-Thomas initially claimed to be innocent, he eventually changed his plea to guilty at a hearing in May at Chelmsford Crown Court. He then received a four-year prison sentence, but was released on parole having already served 10 months at HMP Chelmsford, and he has now already found himself a new club. Emmanuel-Thomas has been snapped up by National League South side AFC Totton, and the 34-year-old's playing career is now set to resume. 'We are absolutely delighted to welcome Jay Emmanuel-Thomas to the club,' Totton revealed in a statement. 'Jay joins us with a wealth of experience in the Championship and we're sure his goals will lead to a successful season here on the South Coast!' During the case, the prosecutor - David Josse KC - told the court that the interception of the two women carrying the drugs had taken place at the airport. He added that it the became 'apparent' that Emmanuel-Thomas has been involved in 'their recruitment' to travel to Thailand. Judge Alexander Mills said: 'It is through your own actions you will no longer be known as a professional footballer. 'You will be known as a criminal. A professional footballer who threw it all away.' Emmanuel-Thomas' lawyer Alex rose, said: 'The financial gain in this case for Mr Emmanuel-Thomas was £5,000.' He added that the former Arsenal academy star, who played five times for the first team, had made a 'catastrophic error of judgement', following a period of 'significant financial hard times' that had led him to 'succumbing to temptation'. Emmanuel-Thomas wrote in a letter read out in the court: 'This past year has been the most harmful and eye-opening of my life. At times it has been unbearable.' He also noted that he 'completely regrets but takes full responsibility for' his actions.


The Independent
6 minutes ago
- The Independent
Joshua, Bruno, Dubois: Does Wembley inspire British heavyweights?
Daniel Dubois will step out in front of 90,000 fans at Wembley on Saturday night for the biggest fight of his life against Oleksandr Usyk. The nerves are bound to be jangling with the undisputed heavyweight championship on the line and Usyk has the advantage of having beaten Dubois before two years ago. But Dubois won at Wembley last year, and it has tended to be a happy hunting ground for British heavyweights in the past. Let's take a look back at those who have dazzled under the famous arch ahead of Dubois' shot at glory. Frank Bruno Fan-favourite Bruno lost to Tim Witherspoon at Wembley in 1986 as he fell short in his bid to win the WBA heavyweight title. He would go on to suffer defeats by Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis in world title bouts and may have thought he was never going to get his hands on heavyweight gold. But he received a fourth and final chance when he took on Oliver McCall at England's national stadium in September 1995. Bruno made his trademark fast start and moved into the lead on the scorecards as tens of thousands of fans roared him on from ringside. The muscular Londoner tired in the closing rounds and had to dig deep to get over the line, but when the final bell rang there was only one winner. Bruno claimed a unanimous decision victory on a famous night in the capital as he finally got his crowning moment. Anthony Joshua After winning a gold medal at the London Olympics in 2012, it became clear that Joshua was going to be British boxing's next big star. He swiftly moved through the heavyweight rankings and won a world title in just his 16th fight as he dispatched Charles Martin inside two rounds. Following a couple of title defences, Joshua was thrown in with Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley in April 2017. What followed was an all-time classic as Joshua and Klitschko both hit the canvas in a dramatic back-and-forth heavyweight scrap. With little to separate the pair heading into the final two rounds, Joshua uncorked a peach of an uppercut to send Klitschko tumbling again and refused to let his opponent off the hook. Another knockdown followed before the referee jumped in to give Joshua his coming-of-age night. Less than 18 months later, Joshua returned to Wembley to defend his unified titles against Alexander Povetkin. Once again, it was far from straightforward for Joshua as he was briefly wobbled early, but he regathered his composure before knocking Povetkin out in the seventh round. Tyson Fury Fury became champion for the first time by beating Wladimir Klitschko at a football stadium in Dusseldorf, so he was never going to be fazed by fighting at Wembley. In April 2022 he faced Dillian Whyte under the arch and insisted in the build-up that it would be his last bout before he headed into retirement. Fury outboxed Whyte in the opening rounds before walking his fellow Brit onto a huge uppercut. Whyte went straight down and was in no position to continue when he rose to his feet on unsteady legs. The 'Gypsy King' did briefly walk away from the sport after that win, but returned just eight months later to beat Derek Chisora for a third time at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Daniel Dubois Dubois entered the ring as the underdog for his all-British clash with Anthony Joshua last September. He was the less experienced man, had lost comprehensively to Usyk the previous year and was taking on a fighter who had lit up Wembley on multiple occasions before. But Dubois had picked up back-to-back knockout wins over Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic, and was riding the crest of a wave. He looked like a man who refused to be denied during his ringwalk, and then hurt Joshua inside the first minute of the contest. A huge knockdown followed in the final seconds of the first round, and Joshua was purely in survival mode after that as he went down again and again. He finally had some success in the fifth round as he briefly stunned Dubois, but as he went in to follow up Dubois landed a huge right hand of his own to finish the fight in emphatic fashion. The 27-year-old IBF champion will be hoping to land a similar punch on Usyk this weekend to become the undisputed heavyweight king.


Daily Mail
7 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Lancashire blame fans for turning up late with thousands left queuing outside Old Trafford as England and India began the fourth Test
Lancashire have blamed fans for turning up late after thousands were left queuing as the fourth Test got under way in Manchester. Lines of people were snaking down Talbot Road and Brian Statham Way when play between England and India began at 11am, with ticket holders taking to social media to vent their frustration. 'If you're wondering why there's gaps in the stands at Emirates Old Trafford,' the Barmy Army posted on X, attaching a photograph of the well-populated streets. Lancashire responded with a statement, saying: 'We are aware that some supporters experienced queues getting into Emirates Old Trafford this morning, which we apologise for. 'We saw nearly 9,000 supporters arrive at the ground very late despite encouraging early arrival, with all bags subject to searches on entry. 'The club will be looking at increasing the number of gates for the rest of the Test match. 'We strongly encourage ticket buyers to only bring bags if required, and if doing so to arrive as early as possible. Gates will be open at 9am for the rest of the game.' The first four days of the penultimate game of the Rothesay Series are 21,500 sell-outs, but huge expanses of empty seats remained in the temporary stand into the afternoon session. 'It shouldn't be necessary to rock up three hours before the start of play. Absolutely shameful scenes at Old Trafford,' one supporter blasted. 'I turned up at Lord's around 10.30am on day one and was inside the ground literally within two minutes.' A social media user named PitchedOutsideLeg added: 'Arrived Old Trafford 09:45. Still way back in huge queue moving slower than a snail's pace. Have paid over £100 for ticket. Several breweries in and around Stretford and Salford nearby. Hopefully whoever has orchestrated this hasn't also organised drinks there later.'