Jamie Smith’s sparkling knock of 87 from 38 balls laid the foundations for Surrey’s third straight Vitality Blast win as they saw off Somerset in their first T20 game of the season at The Kia Oval.
The Surrey batter struck his second successive Blast half-century, sharing a partnership of 111 from 56 balls with Ollie Pope prior to a collapse triggered by Somerset’s Ben Green (four for 32).
Green claimed three in a single over as the home side lost their last six for 11 runs and slumped to 163 all out. But Somerset failed to build partnerships in response, with Sean Abbott and Tom Curran taking three wickets apiece as the defending champions were rolled for 106 in the 16th over.
Surrey made a spluttering start after being inserted, with only seven on the board when opening pair Laurie Evans and Dan Lawrence were both caught in the deep by Tom Lammonby.
Jason Roy soon followed them, swatting Riley Meredith to the midwicket fence and trying to repeat the stroke next ball, with Lammonby pouching the top edge to complete his third catch.
But Smith was immediately into his stride, heaving Craig Overton for the first of his seven sixes and combining power with clean striking of the ball as he launched a ruthless assault on the Somerset attack.
Pope was able to build at a more relaxed pace while his partner raced to a half-century from 22 balls, drilling Roelof van der Merwe for another maximum and Surrey looked strongly placed at 139 for three with seven overs left.
But van der Merwe began the Somerset fightback by bowling Pope (40 from 32) before Green – whose first two overs had cost 27 – captured three wickets in the space of five balls, including a slow yorker to end Smith’s hopes of a maiden T20 century.
Meredith (three for 34) uprooted Abbott’s off stump before Jake Ball bowled last batter Spencer Johnson to round off Surrey’s collapse with six deliveries still unused.
However, the Australian left-armer boosted his side’s hopes with three tight overs at the start of Somerset’s reply – including the wickets of both Tom Banton, caught down the leg side and Will Smeed, who hit 20 from 12 before dragging onto his off stump.
Tom Abell also departed, caught at long on mistiming a drive off Abbott, but Tom Kohler-Cadmore launched Gus Atkinson for successive sixes – the second of them a top-edged hook that was coolly plucked out of the air by a steward at the Vauxhall End.
Looking dangerous with 25 from just 10 balls, Kohler-Cadmore’s innings was abruptly ended by Abbott’s pinpoint throw from the leg side to run him out with a direct hit almost parallel to the stumps at the bowler’s end.
Surrey continued to take wickets at regular intervals, with Abbott recording three for eight in his eight overs and Curran, who sealed victory by having Ball caught at mid-on, three for 16.
