Surrey T20 Preview: Tye says table-toppers Glos can still improve
5 July 2016
Andrew Tye says table-topping Gloucestershire still have improvements to make ahead of what could be a defining week of NatWest T20 Blast cricket.
The side – who have won their last four matches – need two more wins to virtually guarantee them a quarter final place while one win could be enough.
They face Surrey tomorrow (July 6) and Kent (July 8) at the Brightside Ground before hopping across the border to face second-placed Glamorgan.
And despite being on a great run of form, Tye says the squad are still looking to get better.
He said: “The boys are going well at the moment but we still know we can get better. There are still areas of our game we haven’t done as well as we can yet.
“Personally my death bowling hasn’t been that great the couple of games and our fielding has still looked sloppy at times. If we can keep our form with the bat and improve the other two then we should be alright.
“It’s a very important week - it could decide whether we cement our place at the top of the group or come back to the pack.”
Gloucestershire’s second T20 win of the season over local rivals Somerset on Friday night has put them on to 13 points at the top of the South Group.
Captain Michael Klinger was in scintillating form on Friday, leading from the front with 101 – his fifth Glos T20 century - in his side’s seven wicket win at Taunton. He is now the leading runscorer in this year’s Blast competition with 315 runs so far. His prolific form has seen him return to the top of the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) Most Valuable Player (MVP) rankings, something he also achieved in 2015.
And Tye says his Glos and Western Australia team mate is a master at doing the simple things well.
He said: “Credit to the lads, we bowled pretty well at Taunton and then Michael Klinger did his thing and scored a bucket full of runs and we were able to get away with the win again.
“Maxy is a top performer across all formats and his consistency in T20 cricket is really impressive. He just plays good cricket shots, he doesn’t try to over-hit the ball he just extends through the ball every now and then and hits it miles.”
To listen to the full interview with Andrew, including him comparing the Blast and the Big Bash and what he has been getting up to in his down time click below:
Gloucestershire’s only T20 encounter with Surrey ended in dramatic fashion last year when Azhar Mahmood hit a six off the final ball to win the game. But as Glos fans won’t need reminding they exacted their revenge in the Royal London One-Day Cup final.
With Jack Taylor and David Payne away with the Second XI Richard Dawson has reduced his squad to 13 for the clash with Surrey.
Gloucestershire Squad: Michael Klinger (c), Hamish Marshall, Ian Cockbain, Chris Dent, Benny Howell, Kieran Noema-Barnett, Graeme Van Buuren, Gareth Roderick (w), Andrew Tye, Tom Smith, Liam Norwell, Matt Taylor, Craig Miles
Surrey:
Surrey go into their match with Gloucestershire having won just one of their last four Blast matches.
They are currently sixth in the South Group with eight points.
Michael Di Venuto’s men were beaten by eight wickets against Essex last time out and suffered a nine-wicket reverse to Glamorgan the previous day.
A lack of runs was the main problem in both of those matches and this is something they will hope to remedy with the arrival of world number one ranked T20 batsman Aaron Finch.
England opener Jason Roy is back in the squad following England duty and with Kumar Sangakarra, Dwayne Bravo and Ravi Rampaul playing in the Caribbean Premier League, South African allrounder Chris Morris - the most expensive player in this year's IPL auction - comes in for the first time.
Surrey Squad : Gareth Batty (c), Zafar Ansari, James Burke, Rory Burns, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Steven Davies, Jade Dernbach, Aaron Finch, Ben Foakes (w), Stuart Meaker, Chris Morris, Jason Roy, Dominic Sibley
Key Man: Aaron Finch
The Australian T20 captain is one of the most destructive batsmen on the planet. The 29-year-old has hit in excess of 5500 T20 runs at a strike rate of more than 130 - including a Twenty20 world-record 156 against England in 2013 which included a record 14 sixes.
He marked his Surrey County Championship debut this week by smashing his first ball for six and going on to rack up a 90 ball hundred.
Opta Facts
- Six of the eight previous meetings between these sides have been won by Surrey (L2).
- This will be the third time these counties have met in Bristol, Surrey have come away with victories in both of the previous matches played there.
- Gloucestershire have won four in a row; their best run in a decade (six successive wins in 2006).
- Michael Klinger has scored more runs than anyone else this summer (315); he comes into this game having posted 60+ in three of his last four innings.
Last Time We Met (NatWest T20 Blast)
July 1 2015 at The Kia Oval
Gloucestershire 154-5 (20 overs) (Handscomb 39, Dunn 2-15)
Surrey 155-6 (20 overs) (Roy 33, Smith 2-24)
Head-to-Head
| Gloucestershire | Surrey | |
| Played | 8 | 8 |
| Won | 2 | 6 |
| Lost | 6 | 2 |
| Tied | 0 | 0 |
| Win % | 25 | 75 |
