Match Preview: Gloucestershire v Kent (Bristol)
Kent Spitfires journey to Bristol to clash with Gloucestershire in the Vitality Blast at the Seat Unique Stadium. Former champions are still searching for their first win in this year's tournament and will be looking to get off the mark in competition to make a comeback
All-rounder George Linde is their top scorer and power-hitter in this year's Blast. In the bowling line-up, they have Fred Klaassen, Matt Milnes and Qaid Ahmad, who are bowling decently well for the team but look fragile compared to last year. Currently, the team sits at the bottom of the table with 0 points after losing all three matches played. Tawanda Muyeye has replaced Zak Crawley as the latter joined his squad for England's Test Match.
Gloucestershire ranks sixth in the South Group table after winning one of the three matches. Their wicketkeeper batter James Bracey and all-rounder Ryan Higgins are in good form with the bat to score with a decent average and strike rate for their team. David Payne so far has taken seven wickets in 3 matches, averaging 13. Apart from him, Pakistani pacer Naseem Shah has taken five wickets at 12.80.
Glenn Phillips: Reverse scoop king of Gloucestershire
One player to watch for Gloucestershire is Glenn Philips. The all-rounder hasn't gotten off to a good start in this edition, but seeing him hit sixes or boundaries reminds us of the reverse scoop shot from the previous edition, which happened to be his maiden Blast season. While playing for Gloucestershire against Glamorgan in Bristol, the player registered his maiden half-century scoring 94 off 41. He built a 130-run partnership with Benny Howell to post a target of 217. The best highlight was him playing an unbelievable scoop shot off pacer Dan Douthwaite. Having exposed all his stumps at first, the swift nature with which the right-hand batsman executed the shot was worth watching. And now everyone is awaiting his similar performance.
In the previous edition, the first match was won by Kent by five runs; however, Gloucestershire won the second one clinically by eight wickets. With a lack of confidence in the Kent Spitfires, Gloucestershire has to be backed for victory in this clash after the visitors lost their first three matches.
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