Somerset reach third consecutive Vitality Blast final
Somerset reached a third consecutive Vitality Blast final and continued their unbeaten run against Lancashire Lightning by coming out on top by 23 runs in the semi final at Edgbaston.
The team from Taunton made it four out of four in meetings against Lancashire in T20 cricket thanks to a player of the match performance from Tom Kohler Cadmore and a superb blowing performance.
Lancashire won the toss and elected to bat and when James Anderson opened the bowling from the City End you could see why that decision was taken.
The veteran seamer beat the bat and looked threatening. He found Will Smeed’s inside edge with the last delivery of the opening over but fortunately for the Somerset opener, the ball raced to the boundary.
Tom Aspinwall took the second over and completed the rarest of things; a T20 maiden.
George Balderson repalced Anderson for the third over and struck with his opening delivery when Smeed was bowled for five with just six runs on the board.
The second ball of the fifth over saw Tom Kohler Cadmore smash Balderson into the top tier of the stands where a fan took a superb one handed catch, much to the delight of his friends on the big screen.
Anderson bowled the final over of the powerplay and he tried to york Tom Abell only to see the Somerset batter ramp him for six. Abell followed it up with a glorious cut shot.
15 had come from the first five deliveries but Anderson got his revenge with the final ball when he bowled Abell, who was looking to cut again, for 26 off 14 balls.
The Somerset 50 arrived in the seventh over but when James Rew flicked Aspinwall straight to Keaton Jennings at mid wicket Somerset 62 for three in the eighth.
Lancashire turned to spin in an attempt to stem the flow of runs with Liam Livingstone and Tom Hartley bowling in tandem.
As the run rate slowed, Somerset looked to hit out but Sean Dickson was stumped for a run-a-ball 16 at 93 for four in the 13th.
Kohler Cadmore brought up the Somerset 100 with a huge six back over Livingstone’s head and went to his half century off the next delivery from 38 deliveries.
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18 runs came from the 17th over, bowled by Blatherwick, 17 of those came from the blade of Kohler Cadmore who was dispatching the ball to all corners of the ground.
The 50 partnership between Kohler Cadmore and Lewis Gregory came from 27 balls and the stand was worth 57 when the Somerset skipper fell for a run-a-ball 15, caught on the boundary by Hartley off Anderson.
Kohler Cadmore had advanced to 81 when he was caught at deep mid wicket by Blatherwick off the bowling of Balderson at 154 for six in the 19th over. It was a superb innings and his runs came from just 52 balls. Quite rightly he received a warm reception from those gathered at Edgbaston.
The last ball of the same over saw Ben Green fall in the same fashion at 161 for seven.
The responsibility of bowling the final over fell to Aspinwall. 21 runs came from it courtesy of Craig Overton and Migael Pretorius.
The chase started brightly as Lancashire took 15 off the opening over, bowled by Craig Overton.
The score had raced to 22 in the second over, bowled by Gregory, when Wells (7) was dismissed by a stunning catch from Pretorius at short fine leg. The ball looked for all the world like it was flying to the boundary but the South African dived full length to his right to take a remarkable grab.
Jennings and Matty Hurst had taken their side to 35 in the third when the latter was trapped lbw by Overton.
Livingstone brought up the Lancashire 50 in the fifth over with a big six off Overton, and by the end of the powerplay the Red Rose County had raced to 73 for two.
The third wicket partnership was worth 43 when Jennings finally fell for 44.
Lewis Goldsworthy had been introduced into the attack at the Birmingham End to bowl the eighth over, and the fourth delivery saw Kohler Cadmore take a good diving catch on the run at long on at 78 for three.
The 12th over was an eventful one. It saw the Lancashire score tick over to three figures but then there was drama.
Gregory appeal for lbw against Livingstone and the umpire’s finger pointed to the sky. However, the Lancashire batter immediately reviewed the decision, convinced that he would get a reprieve.
After several minutes the umpires decision was upheld and Livingstone had to depart for 29 off 19 at 102 for four. He was not impressed!
The score had advanced to 110 when Ben Green claimed a wicket in the 15th over courtesy of a stunning diving catch by Gregory at short extra cover. Arav Shetty was the player dismissed for six.
The 17th over, bowled by Pretorius, did nothing for fans of either side who are of a nervous disposition. 18 runs came from it but Blatherwick was caught in the deep by Overton at 142 for six.
The 19th over saw Balderson retired out for seven but his replacement Hartley fell first ball when he was caught by Kohler Cadmore off Green.
Pretorius accounted for both Jones and Aspinwall in the final over, Overton taking both catches as Lancashire were dismissed for 159.
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Tom Kohler-Cadmore hit a magnificent 81 as Somerset reached a third successive Vitality Blast final 👊
Watch the highlights of their semi-final win over Lancashire Lightning pic.twitter.com/d0XguVQmYk
— Vitality Blast (@VitalityBlast) September 13, 2025
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