Will Smeed’s 94 drives Somerset to T20 Blast crown with record chase

Will Smeed’s 94 off 58 balls powered Somerset to a six-wicket victory over Hampshire in the Vitality Blast final at Edgbaston on Saturday as the county completed a dramatic chase of 195, the highest total successfully chased in a final.

Hampshire had posted 194 for 6 in their 20 overs, propelled by Toby Albert’s 85 and James Vince’s 52, but Somerset reached 195 for 4 with an over to spare. Smeed’s unbeaten-like assault provided the backbone of the run chase until he was dismissed at the start of the 19th over with 18 still required; captain Lewis Gregory then struck successive sixes in the same over to seal the title.

Smeed’s 94 included 14 fours and a six as he and Sean Dickson put on a fourth-wicket stand of 88, reversing what had looked like a testing chase after Somerset slipped to 89 for 3 in the 10th over. Tom Kohler-Cadmore provided an explosive start, taking the side to 46 without loss inside five overs before being yorked by young England paceman Sonny Baker.

Hampshire’s innings had been built around Albert’s breakthrough season. The 23-year-old, who has featured in every one of Hampshire’s matches this campaign, finished the final on 85 off 48 balls and became the competition’s leading run-scorer for the season with 633 runs. Vince and Albert’s second-wicket stand of 97 helped set up Hampshire’s total, which equalled the previous highest score in a final when they reached 194.

Somerset’s response was punctuated by nervous moments for the visitors. At 89 for 3, the match hung in the balance, and a dropped chance on the boundary when Scott Currie put down Sean Dickson in the 14th over proved decisive as the required run-rate climbed into the double digits. Smeed’s dismissal came when he lofted Currie to James Vince on the long-off boundary, but Gregory’s late hitting — a boundary followed by two leg-side sixes in the 19th over — ended the contest.

"The ball seems to fly here especially under the lights and the dew comes in so we always knew we had a chance," Smeed said on BBC Radio Five Live Sports Extra. "The guys have been unbelievable in the whole competition, different people have stood up in different games. I think that's probably our strength, we've got match winners one to 11."

The victory gives Somerset their third T20 Blast title, joining Hampshire and Leicestershire on three wins after previous successes in 2005 and 2023. It also marks a strong period for Somerset in white-ball finals: they have now reached three consecutive Blast finals, winning two of them and recovering from an eight-wicket defeat to Gloucestershire in last season’s final.

Hampshire coach Adrian Birrell praised his side’s campaign but reflected on missed opportunities in the final. "Toby Albert and James Vince were outstanding," Birrell said on BBC Radio Five Live Sports Extra. "Every over and boundary they were getting, I don't think we executed that well. It was quite difficult to defend here with the outfield being so slick with the dew that had come in."

Somerset captain Gregory said the team’s depth had been crucial across the competition. "Year in, year out we're challenging for this trophy and to get over the line is mighty special," he told BBC Radio Five Live Sports Extra. "We've been in tough spots and someone has pulled us out. We've got a team with guys who can win matches on their own and we've seen that over the past few games."

Hampshire’s route to the final included a semi-final in which Chris Lynn hit a century, and Lynn’s form had promised further big hitting on Finals Day before he tired early in the final. For Somerset, the title caps a campaign in which several different players produced match-winning contributions, underscoring the depth the captain and Smeed highlighted after the trophy presentation.