On DLS, Nottinghamshire 237 (James 71, Steel 3-41) were defeated by 3 wickets by Surrey 244 (Foakes 68, Steel 67).
Surrey defeated Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Welbeck in a game that was cut to 40 overs per side after the home team collapsed from 208 for four to 237 all out in the span of 33 balls, losing their final four wickets in the final eight balls of the game as Surrey earned their first victory.
With Ben Foakes smashing three sixes in a 64-ball 68 and Cameron Steel hitting two in a 66-ball 67, Surrey scored 244 off their 40 overs on a green pitch. The pair added 121 for the fourth wicket. The two effectively added 90 runs to the Surrey total by making the Outlaws pay dearly for two dropped catches that gave Foakes a life on 14 and Steel on 31.
Lyndon James (71) and Matt Montgomery (62) seemed to have put the Outlaws on track for a third victory of the year, but Surrey’s spin bowlers had other ideas. Left-armer Dan Moriarty took three for 55 in a thrilling finish, while Steel claimed three for 41 with his leg breaks.
Even though the game started on time, the participants were only able to bowl nine balls before the rain stopped play. Dom Sibley edged his first ball to second slip, giving Brett Hutton plenty of time to support Outlaws skipper Hameed Haseeb’s choice to bat first.
Following the hour-and-24-minute break, an assertive Ryan Patel gave skipper Rory Burns a commanding lead by hitting Toby Pettman and Tom Loten for leg-side sixes during a partnership of 65 runs off of 75 balls, which came to an end when Burns was caught at deep square leg.
Soon after, Patel was well caught by Ben Slater almost on the rope at midwicket for 40, leaving Surrey in need of rebuilding. However, in the end, this double setback allowed Steel to join Foakes in what turned out to be the crucial part of the innings, as the fourth-wicket pair rattled along at 6.5 an over for more than 18 overs, albeit helped by the aforementioned shoddy fielding.
Eventually dismissed by Liam Patterson-White after taking a brilliant return catch to cap off a strong stint, Foakes was put down by Montgomery off James on the midwicket boundary at 14. While everything was going on, Steel managed to escape on 31 when he reverse-swept Calvin Harrison, and Pettman blew a clear-cut opportunity at short third man.
Ben Geddes and Luke Griffiths, a 17-year-old fast bowler making his senior debut, both holed out in the final overs, giving Pettman (two for 50) the opportunity to claim his victims. Steel was eventually dismissed by a catch at deep extra cover off Hutton (two for 45).
Another DLS-modified target that perplexed witnesses was Surrey’s pursuit.
Another DLS amended target that confused onlookers was the one Surrey was chasing, which was three runs smaller than their total. At the conclusion of an exciting opening power, the Outlaws were 34 for 1. The visitors had lost one bowler in Matt Dunn, who left the field two balls into his third over, and nearly a fielder in Sibley, who was struck painfully in the shin while fielding at slip.
Sibley needed medical attention on the field but kept playing. In addition, he made two catches, the first of which left him in additional discomfort as he dove to his left to hold the chance as Conor McKerr was
This time, it was rookie Griffiths who was at fault. Although the teenager did make amends for his mistake by giving James his first senior wicket as the Outlaws batter heaved towards midwicket but miscued, with wicketkeeper Foakes running halfway to the boundary to take the catch, it came at a cost as James advanced to his second half-century in the competition.
When Patterson-White joined Montgomery, the home team’s requirement was cut from 75 from 61 balls to 42 from 29 balls before Patterson-White was caught at midwicket by McKerr, edged out by Ben Martindale, and the second of which he made at mid-off when Slater mistimed a drive to mid-off.
At the midway stage of their pursuit, Nottinghamshire were 99 for three, and it appeared that Surrey had the upper hand after Hameed, who was trying to break a streak of low scores, top-edged left-arm spinner Dan Moriarty to midwicket, while James had been pounded at mid-off on 26.
The Outlaws required six runs off the final over, which was reduced to four runs off four balls after Montgomery was dismissed leg before by Steel to a ball that kept low and Dane Schadendorf was brilliantly caught at backward point off the same bowler. However, the Outlaws lost their final three wickets to Moriarty off those final four balls, with Hutton holing out to long off, Harrison being run out, and Loten being stumped.
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