Vitality Blast Preview | Glos v Surrey
1 June 2023
Glos return to Bristol at 6:30pm on Friday night when they face Surrey for their fifth match of the 2023 Vitality Blast.
The Club played two games in two days at the beginning of this week, winning against Middlesex and losing to Essex, with both games going to the last over.
Gloucestershire v Somerset next Friday night is now SOLD OUT, so tomorrow’s match is your last chance to watch Shire in the Blast on Friday night in Bristol.
T20 Blast tickets for Gloucestershire v Surrey on Friday night available here.
Team news
Dale Benkenstein makes one addition to Gloucestershire's squad from the away trip to Essex, with Zaman Akhter added to the group. If Akhter plays he will become Shire's 104th T20 player and the seventh debutant in five games this season.
Five of the other debutants, Grant Roelofsen, Zafar Gohar, Ollie Price, Ben Charlesworth and Danny Lamb make the squad but Marchant de Lange drops out after pulling up during his delivery stride against Essex.
De Lange is being assessed along with Graeme van Buuren, who also doesn't make the squad for Friday because of a minor hamstring issue.
Your 15-player Gloucestershire squad to face Essex:
Last time out
Gloucestershire set Essex 196 to win on Tuesday night thanks to Ben Charlesworth’s brutal 19-ball fifty, a record for Gloucestershire in the shortest format.
Despite Charlesworth’s memorable knock, Shire could not stop Essex reaching their target in the final over for a three-wicket win.
Our opponents
Surrey beat Hampshire on Wednesday to make it three wins from their first four Blast fixtures. Will Jacks starred with the bat scoring 83* (57) as the London side romped home with seven balls to spare.
The Surrey bowling unit, including England stars Sam Curran and Chris Jordan and international T20 specialist Sunil Narine, had restricted Hampshire to 156/4 from their 20 overs before Jacks’ onslaught guided the visitors to a six-wicket win in Southampton.
Last meeting
Gloucestershire played Surrey at the Kia Oval last season in a reduced-overs match that saw Surrey win by 37 runs in London.
The bowling unit kept Surrey to 129 all out in their 16 overs, but the Shire chase fell short due to some exceptional bowling by Topley, Curran, Jordan and co.
How to watch
Gloucestershire face Surrey in the Vitality Blast at 18:30 on Friday 2nd June at the Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol.
Tickets to support the Shire in person are available here.
If you can’t make it to the ground on Friday the game will be available to watch on Sky Sports.
