By Alex Smith
TOM Curran produced heroics with bat and ball to give Surrey a Vitality Blast Off victory over Hampshire Hawks – and get revenge for last weekend’s Vitality County Championship mauling.
With the ball, fast bowler Curran claimed three for 32 to peg the Hawks back and help restrict them to 162.
But his starring role came with the bat as he came in with 63 needed with 38 balls remaining to smash 37 off 20 to see Surrey to a five-wicket victory at Utilita Bowl.
Championship holders Surrey had been humbled by their record-heaviest defeat on Sunday but had their own back to open the Vitality Blast.
Spencer Johnson was exceptional at both ends of the innings, after Surrey had chosen to bowl.
With the new ball the Australian swung back to rip past Ben McDermott –his first two overs only going for two runs. When he returned, he only went for 12 more runs and picked up a dangerous-looking Liam Dawson – who had crashed 30 off 12.
James Vince and Ali Orr also departed within the first five overs as the Hawks struggled to 23 for three.
But the leading middle-order Blast run-scorer since 2021 Joe Weatherley and in-form Toby Albert put the hosts back on track with a 62-run partnership off 41 balls.
Surrey will have been sick of the sight of Albert after he picked off his maiden Vitality County Championship century against them over the weekend, before nailing two sixes and a quintuplet of fours in an entertaining 46.
Weatherley fell when he hoicked Tom Curran to deep midwicket – the first of three for 32 for the England pacer – and while Albert, James Fuller, Benny Howell and Dawson tried to kick on, they were kept on a leash with regular wickets.
Hampshire’s 162 for nine was a good recovery but felt under par, in light on Southern Vipers’ victorious 173 earlier in the Blast Off day.
But at the halfway point of Surrey’s chase, they were over a run behind the rate and had lost three of their premium batters.
Dan Lawrence, on T20 debut for Surrey, was strangled down legside by Michael Neser, Laurie Evans – after a promising 34 – was castled by Fuller, and captain Ollie Pope was stumped off Dawson.
The 43 runs added by Evans and Roy, was quickly followed by 33 between Jason Roy and Jamie Smith, but just as that looked to take off, John Turner got Roy to chop on and Smith skied to long off.
But Curran arrived and tore up the win predictors with a strike-rate over 200 from almost ball one. His two sixes almost cleared the ground’s perimeter fences to take control of the chase in partnership with Jordan Clark.
With six needed from the final over, Curran and Clark got their side over the line with four balls to spare.
