Archie Vaughan run out without facing a ball on senior debut in Taunton
Andrew Umeed leads the players off after his unbeaten 114 secured victory • Getty Images
Somerset 270 for 7 (Umeed 114*, Rew 71) beat Kent 267 (Evison 55, Stewart 51, Goldsworthy 4-44) by three wickets
Andy Umeed continued his love affair with the Metro Bank One-Day Cup as Somerset launched their Group A campaign with a three-wicket victory over Kent Spitfires at the Cooper Associates County Ground, Taunton.
The opener, who averaged 87.57 in last season’s competition, hit an unbeaten 114 off 121 balls to help his side chase down a target of 268 with 3.3 overs to spare. James Rew contributed 71 off 69 balls.
The Spitfires had posted 267 all out off 49 overs after winning the toss, Joey Evison and Grant Stewart making half-centuries, while Hamidullah Qadri contributed a rapid 43. Left-armer spinner Lewis Goldsworthy, back from a loan spell with Leicestershire, claimed career-best List A figures of 4 for 44 and seamer Alfie Ogborne 3 for 58.
Kent were given a solid start by Evison and Beyers Swanepoel, who skied a return catch to Ogborne off a leading edge with the total on 31 in the eighth over.
Eighteen-year-old Ekansh Singh marked his debut with a six over midwicket off Kasey Aldridge before falling for 16, bowled aiming to launch another maximum off Jack Leach. Skipper Jack Leaning then helped Evison add 37, but was undone by a reverse sweep, bottom-edging a ball from Goldsworthy onto his stumps.
Goldsworthy followed up with the wickets of Evison, whose 55 occupied 69 balls, Harry Finch and Jaydn Denly as Kent became bogged down against a spin attack also featuring Leach, Josh Thomas and another 18-year-old debutant in Archie Vaughan, son of former England captain Michael Vaughan, who bowled six tidy overs of offspin for just 16 runs.
With ten overs for their innings remaining, the Spitfires were struggling on 177 for 6. But after Charlie Stobo had fallen to Ogborne, Stewart and Qadri delivered some overdue momentum, sharing five sixes and seven fours in a stand of 58 off 5.1 overs as Stewart went to fifty off 32 deliveries.
Somerset’s response had reached 32 in the fifth over when George Thomas miscued a pull shot off Swanepoel to be caught at midwicket. Goldsworthy made only 7 before edging a catch behind off Stobo. But Umeed and Rew then assumed control, batting with increasing confidence.
Rew was first to his half-century, off 47 balls, with seven fours and a big six off legspinner Matt Parkinson, drilled over long-off. Umeed soon followed, off 62 deliveries, having struck three boundaries.
Rew had greeted Leaning’s introduction to the attack with a six over midwicket. When Somerset’s young wicketkeeper deposited a short ball from Evison through mid-on for four the partnership overtook Somerset’s List A record for the third wicket against Kent, previously 108, put together by Peter Trego and Dean Elgar at Taunton in 2017.
Soon afterwards, Rew was bowled by Nathan Gilchrist, swinging to leg. Vaughan was run out backing up without facing a ball as Stobo fingertipped a Umeed drive onto the stumps and suddenly Somerset were 165 for four.
Umeed responded with a straight six off Stobo and was joined by skipper Sean Dickson, who cleared the ropes off Stewart as the pair added 40 before he carelessly pulled a catch to midwicket off the same bowler and fell for 23.
Josh Thomas was bowled off an inside edge by Parkinson and Aldridge also fell cheaply. But Leach thumped a six off Parkinson and Umeed repeated the dose before going to a 119-ball hundred with another maximum off Stobo as Somerset finished with a flourish on 270 for 7.
