Hampshire pulled off a nerve-racking two-run win over defending champions Nottinghamshire in the second quarter-final of the 2021 Vitality T20 Blast at Trent Bridge.
Chasing a paltry 126, Notts needed three runs off the last over, with one wicket in hand. Bradley Wheal began with three dots, and removed Dane Paterson with the fourth, ball to bowl Notts out for 123.
Having been asked to bat, Hampshire lost both D’Arcy Short (9) and James Vince (6) inside the Powerplay, to Paterson (3-22) and Samit Patel (1-25) respectively. They struggled to get going, and were reduced to 40/5 in nine overs.
Tom Prest (44 in 34 balls) and James Fuller (30 in 24) then added 59 for the sixth wicket before Fuller fell to Matthew Carter (2-18). Prest departed soon in the next over as Hampshire finished on by posting a below-par total.
Coming to chase, Alex Hales (19 in 12) and Joe Clarke added 42 in 27 balls before the former was caught off Liam Dawson. Ben Duckett (16) looked promising in the middle, but a direct hit of Fuller sent him back to the dressing room. Tom Moores did not last long as Notts were 68/3 in 8.5 overs.
Clarke kept the asking rate under control, needing 43 off 47 balls. But Hampshire triggered a collapse by dismissing him in the 13th over. Notts slumped to 109/9 from 83/3 after Clarke’s departure.
Coming at No. 9, Carter tried as much as he could but did not get any support from the tail. As a result, they fell two runs short of the target.
Brief scores: Hampshire 125/9 in 20 overs (Prest 44; Paterson 3-22) beat Nottinghamshire 123 in 19.4 overs (Clarke 42; Dawson 3-24) by 2 runs. Player of the Match: Liam Dawson.