Hampshire will look to claim their first away victory of the 2016 NatWest T20 Blast when they take on Somerset at the County Ground, Taunton.
Hampshire Squad:
Hampshire have been given a huge boost by the availability of James Vince, who will resume his duties as club skipper against Somerset, whilst Michael Carberry, Adam Wheater and Shahid Afridi are all set to feature. Carberry missed trips to Kent and Surrey through a hand injury.
All-rounders Darren Sammy and Afridi are set for action – the last time the pair played together, they hit 65 runs off 34 balls between them.
The Opposition:
On a season-long loan from Hampshire, bowler Yasir Arafat is set to feature for Somerset against Hants at Taunton - Arafat was Man of the Match when the sides last met, taking 4-37 as a Hampshire player. He’s taken two wickets in his two NatWest T20 Blast appearances for Somerset in 2016.
Six machine Chris Gayle is the key batting threat for Somerset, who have capable run-scorers throughout the order - Johann Myburgh hit 86 runs off 53 balls in a 6-wicket victory over Surrey.
Did You Know?
- Shahid Afridi scored 80 off 42 balls in his only appearance for Hampshire against Somerset, when the sides met in the 2011 semi-final. Afridi hit 5 sixes and 6 boundaries at Edgbaston.
- Three out of four wickets taken by Tino Best in 2016 have been openers; the highest ratio of anyone to take 3+ scalps in total this summer
Recent Form:
Hampshire won by 6 runs the last time these sides met in the NatWest T20 Blast, as a half-ton from Michael Carberry set up victory, sealed by fine bowling from Arafat (4-37).
Before their abandoned match with Sussex Sharks at the The Ageas Bowl, Hampshire had won one of their opening five matches in the competition, a 9-run home victory over Kent.
Prior to an abandoned fixture against Glamorgan, Somerset had won their last two NatWest T20 Blast matches to move into a mid-table position in the Southern Division. They opened the season with defeats to Sussex and Kent.
Full Hampshire Squad:
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Shahid Afridi (00)
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Michael Carberry (15)
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Will Smith (2)
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Lewis McManus (18)
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Sean Ervine (7)
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Adam Wheater (31)
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Liam Dawson (8)
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Tino Best (36)
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Tom Alsop (9)
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Ryan Stevenson (47)
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Gareth Berg (13)
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Gareth Andrew (55)
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James Vince (14) Captain
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Darren Sammy (88)
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Coverage:
Live text commentary will be available via the Hampshire Cricket Twitter and Facebook pages.
There will also be ball-by-ball commentary available on BBC Radio Solent and online at bbc.co.uk.
