Surrey will play their final group stage matches on Sunday when Hampshire Hawks women and Essex men visit the Kia Oval for the Sustainabili-T20 match
Bryony Smith’s side, who have already qualified for Friday’s Finals Day, will play top of the table Hampshire at 2pm, before Ollie Pope’s side face Essex at 6:30pm.
Four teams have qualified for Friday’s Vitality Blast Women’s Finals Day at the Kia Oval, with Surrey joined by Hampshire, Durham and The Blaze. The make up of the semi-final matches will depend on final standings in the group phase.
Ollie Pope’s side sit top of the South Group, knowing that victory against Essex should secure a home quarter-final on Wednesday.
HOW CAN I KEEP UP WITH PLAY?
Tickets for the double header are still available to purchase here. Both matches will be broadcast live on Surrey’s YouTube channel. Surrey’s social media channels will provide regular updates and video clips throughout.
Highlights and a written match report will be available at the end of each match.
SQUAD UPDATES
Priyanaz Chatterji makes Bryony Smith’s squad 15-players strong. Surrey men’s squad remains unchanged from this week’s victories over Sussex Sharks and Kent Spitfires. Jamie Smith remains sidelined with a finger injury.
HAMPSHIRE
Captain: Georgia Adams
Overseas players: Amanda-Jade Wellington (Australia, all)
2025 finish: 6th
2025 leading run-scorer: Ella McCaughan (327)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Bex Tyson (16 wickets)
Key winter moves: Ellyse Perry might have brought star power last year, but her overseas replacement, Amanda-Jade Wellington, offers almost guaranteed game-changing moments. Freya Davies retired, and Mary Taylor decamped to Warwickshire, so there is more fast bowling pressure on Daisy Gibb and Poppy Tulloch to step up.
The big question: Can Ella McCaughan restart from where she left off? The opening batter was on course for an all-timer campaign by beginning with three fifties in a row before striking the women’s competition’s maiden century. A season-ending injury stopped the run-fest in its tracks. A full campaign of that quality will only increase talk of higher honours.
Wildcard watch: Francesca Sweet. When she signed in the winter, the hope was that all-rounder Sweet would fill a hole in the depleted bowling ranks. In the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, it has turned out that batting is her stronger suit. She has all the attributes to be a powerful finisher, which could turn matches in Hampshire’s favour and earn the attention of The Hundred recruiters.
Final thought: This year’s Blast is a difficult one to predict, with it coinciding with the T20 World Cup. The Hawks’ non-internationals look in a far better position than a year ago to compete at this level, especially with Naomi Dattani now fit, and youngsters becoming more consistent. Bettering their disappointing sixth-place finish shouldn’t be difficult, and they should be in the mix for a Finals Day place.
ESSEX
Captain: Simon Harmer
Overseas players: Simon Harmer (South Africa, all), Wiaan Mulder (South Africa, first six games)
Finals Day appearances: Six (2006, 2008, 2010, 2013, 2019, 2023)
Titles: One (2019)
2025 finish: 9th in South Group
2025 leading runscorer: Michael Pepper (364)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Mohammad Amir (20)
Key winter moves: With wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Rossington not re-engaged after his T20-only contract did not work out, South African all-rounder Wiaan Mulder is the only addition to Essex’s Vitality Blast squad. Mulder’s most recent international T20 caps came as recently as March in New Zealand, and with approaching 150 appearances in the format, he should prove an asset in the early matches.
The big question: What will Jordan Cox have learnt from the IPL where he largely watched from the substitutes’ bench with Royal Challengers Bangalore rather than performing in the middle alongside Virat Kohli? Cox topped the Essex batting averages last season – 10 runs ahead of anyone else – and scored a memorable century against Hampshire. Can he do it again?
Wildcard watch: Luc Benkenstein. Leg-spinners are worth their weight in gold in white-ball cricket as Benkenstein showed in last year’s Blast where his 11 wickets earnt him a share of second place in the Essex wicket-taking list alongside Simon Harmer – and with a significantly superior average than his captain. Despite being only 21, he has T20 experience and temperament.
Final thought: Things can only get better for Essex. They won only three games last season, two of them late on with nothing at stake, to finish bottom of the South Group. The year before they were only edged out of a top-four place on run-rate, and in 2023 were beaten finalists. With their younger players a year more experienced, maybe an improved level of consistency can be expected to reverse the downward trend.
