Vitality Blast cricket returns as Lancashire visit the Home of T20 Cricket for a mouth-watering double header in the south London sunshine
Bryony Smith’s champions face Lancashire Thunder at 2:15pm, with Sam Curran’s men’s team facing Lancashire Lightning at 6:30pm.
HOW CAN I KEEP UP WITH THE MATCH?
The matches with Lancashire will be broadcast live on the Surrey YouTube channel. The Club’s social media channels will provide updates and video clips, with a written report, highlights and the Oval & Out podcast available at the end of play.
SURREY SQUADS
Women’s
Laura Harris, who signed for the entire Vitality Blast campaign, joins the squad. Alice Capsey, Sophia Dunkley and Tilly Corteen-Coleman are unavailable due to international commitments. Danni Wyatt-Hodge is unavailable as she awaits the birth of her first child.
Phoebe Franklin is still recovering from an injury sustained over the winter.
Men’s
Chris Jordan continues his rehabilitation following an ankle injury. Ollie Sykes remains sidelined with a knee injury.
Tom Lawes is unavailable due to his involvement with the England Lions, with Jamie Smith, Matt Fisher and Gus Atkinson rested ahead of the upcoming Test series with New Zealand.
Lancashire Thunder
Previewed by Graham Hardcastle, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
Captain: Ellie Threlkeld
Overseas player: Meg Lanning (Australia, full campaign)
2025 finish: 4th
2025 leading run-scorer: Emma Lamb (336)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Alana King, Tara Norris (16)
Key winter moves: Talk about statement signing, hey. Lancashire’s capture of Australian batting legend Meg Lanning is not only a boost for to the county’s hopes of Blast glory but also the county game in general. The best players in the world want to come and play here. Happy days. She replaces compatriot Alana King, the leg-spinner who was Thunder’s joint top wicket-taker last year.
The big question: Can Lancashire complete the set? Champions last year in both the Vitality County T20 Cup and then the Metro Bank One-Day Cup, this is the missing one they would love to put into the Emirates Old Trafford trophy cabinet. That they fell short of a place at Finals Day last year really stung a side who are hungry for sustained success.
Wildcard watch: Grace Johnson. Not an automatic pick in Thunder’s XI, but perhaps more likely given the impending absence of Scotland duo Ailsa Lister and Darcey Carter because of T20 World Cup duty. An Academy graduate who bowls seam and bats in the middle order, the now 21-year-old captained Lancashire’s U18s to two national titles in 2024.
Final thought: It certainly hasn’t been the start to the season Lancashire were wanting, with batting fragilities leaving them with an uphill task to defend their One-Day Cup title. They will be banking on Meg Lanning’s presence to really give that area of their team some oomph in the Blast. Friday July 10 looms as a historic day for the county as they host a televised T20 Roses double header at Emirates Old Trafford. The women open a blockbuster day with an afternoon clash against Yorkshire.
Lancashire Lightning
Previewed by Graham Hardcastle, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
Captain: Keaton Jennings
Overseas players: Chris Green (Australia, all) and Ben McDermott (Australia, all)
Finals Day appearances: 10 (2004, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2025)
Titles: One (2015)
2025 finish: Semi-finalists
2025 leading run-scorer: Keaton Jennings (459)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Luke Wood (22)
Key winter moves: It’s a case of, ‘If you can’t beat them, sign them’ with the capture of powerful Australian wicketkeeper-batter Ben McDermott – part of Hampshire’s team which beat Lancashire in the 2022 final. McDermott’s compatriot Chris Green, the talismanic all-rounder, is back for a third successive campaign. Another all-rounder in Paul Coughlin has signed from Durham.
The big question: Can the Lightning cope without Luke Wells (shoulder), Ajeet Singh Dale (hamstring) and Arav Shetty (finger), who have all had surgery and are long-term injury absentees? It stretched the squad during the first block of Championship matches. The loss of Wells would seem a particular blow given his capabilities with bat, ball and in the field.
Wildcard watch: Mitch Stanley. This isn’t the selection of an unknown quantity. After all, speedster Stanley, 25, is an England Lion. But he has yet to really prove himself in any format given his lack of cricket due to previous injuries and workload management. Since debuting four years ago in this format, he’s only played 18 matches. But what a talent. He could blow a few batting line-ups away.
Final thought: For all the Finals Day appearances, Lancashire just haven’t been able to get over the winning line. Only one title – in 2015, under new coach Steven Croft’s captaincy – is not enough. The availability of Messrs Buttler, Livingstone and Salt will be a key factor in their pursuit of title number two. Get the England trio for a bulk of matches from now until the start of July, before India arrive for limited overs internationals, and Lancashire could be motoring.
