Trego blasts Somerset to home quarter final
Somerset secured a home quarter-final in the Friends Provident t20 with a six-wicket victory over local rivals Gloucestershire at Bristol
16-Jul-2010
Somerset secured a home quarter-final in the Friends Provident t20 with a six-wicket victory over local rivals Gloucestershire at Bristol. A crowd of more than 6,000 saw the South Division leaders chase down a target of 153 with 3.1 overs to spare, Peter Trego blasting 46 off 17 balls and Zander de Bruyn making 37.
Gloucestershire's 152 for nine was built around 45 from Hamish Marshall, but Kieron Pollard (3 for 36), Alfonso Thomas (2 for 21) and Trego (2 for 29) restricted the home side after a bright start. Somerset's reply got off to a bad start when Marcus Trescothick was bowled by Steve Kirby, who typically sent the former England opener on his way with a few choice words.
But Trego was in tremendous form, square-cutting with panache for many of his eight fours and lifting Jon Lewis and James Franklin over the leg-side boundary for sixes. Craig Kieswetter threatened a return to form with 20 before top-edging a catch to deep square off Anthony Ireland.
But, after Trego followed, De Bruyn and James Hildreth (18 not out) ensured there was no way back for the Gladiators. Pollard applied the coup de grace with successive sixes off Ireland and one off Kirby before finishing 30 not out off 12 balls.
Gloucestershire would have hoped for better from their innings after reaching 80 for 3 at the halfway point. Aaron Redmond fell early to Ben Phillips, but Alex Gidman (31) and Franklin (20) took the score to 55 in the six overs of power play before Gidman was trapped lbw by Trego.
The allrounder also removed Franklin, caught behind at the second attempt by Kieswetter standing up to the stumps, but from 71 for three the Gladiators were given good momentum by Marshall and Chris Dent (30), who added 61 in eight overs.
Dent was then caught at wide long-on off Pollard, who had Marshall taken by Kieswetter on the drive in the same over. It signalled a turning point as Gloucestershire continued to lose wickets steadily in scoring only 20 off their last four overs.