It is the final night of the group stage of the NatWest T20 Blast on Friday night and heading into the evening there is still a lot of issues to be determined as far as places in the quarter finals are concerned.
Just three sides have sealed their place in the last eight heading into the final night so there are five spots up for grabs on what should be one of the most exciting evenings of cricket of the entire season. Despite the Test match going on we have a live game which sees the South Group in focus with the other games sure to be well covered both in that coverage and elsewhere.
North Group
The big match in this group is the one at Old Trafford where the Lancashire Lightning take on the Birmingham Bears in a contest where the losers will be out. Birmingham will definitely qualify with a win while Lancashire will overtake them should they win and would have every chance of progressing.
The other three matches see the defending champions Northamptonshire hosting Durham needing to win to progress, Derbyshire play host to Worcestershire and Leicestershire head to Trent Bridge to take on a Nottinghamshire side who will top the group with a win.
South Group
Glamorgan and Hampshire are the only two sides definitely through in this group but all nine sides can still make it into the quarter finals. Glamorgan, who will top the group with a win, host Middlesex while Hampshire, who will top the table if they win and Glamorgan don’t, welcome Somerset to the Ageas Bowl.
The TV match comes from Hove where Sussex host Essex side in a match which sees both sides still in with every chance of progressing while the other game sees Kent taking on Surrey at Canterbury in another big match for both sides with the winners likely to qualify and the losers definitely going out.
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Betting
I’m going with three bets on the final night. There were others which tempted me but annoyingly the weather is going to get involved down the west of the country which negates my enthusiasm in them but the TV game should be unaffected which is good as it is a massive game.
Both Sussex and Essex can still qualify with a win but it is the home side Sussex who I expect to pick up that win. Essex played on Thursday night and went the distance and then have the late night and the travelling involved which is never easy especially after a defeat. Sussex will be fresher and with home advantage should be confident. If this comes down to a battle of the bowlers Sussex have more than an edge and they bat deep enough too. I expect them to beat an Essex side who melt under pressure quicker than an ice cube.
Although I expect Essex to lose I fancy they will offer something with the bat in the match. It is effectively a knockout match after all. Sussex have been playing with freedom with the bat all season so I expect them to tuck into this Essex attack which makes over 37.5 boundaries stand out to me.
Whenever Essex are in a pressure situation we usually see their captain Ryan ten Doeschate come to the fore in a big way and at 6/1 he is a big price to top score in a side that I believe are a batsman light especially against a team who have the seamers up top to rip into an order. Generally the higher the pressure the better ten Doeschate plays so that 6/1 is something of a no brainer.
Tips
WON – Back Sussex to beat Essex for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Betbright
Back them here:
Back Sussex vs Essex – Over 37.5 boundaries for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with William Hill
Back it here:
WON – Back R.ten Doeschate Top Essex Batsman for a 1/10 stake at 7.00 with Bet365
Back him here:
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