Dickson denies Bears to steer Somerset to Finals Day

Taunton Vitality Blast quarter-final

Bears 190-6 (20 overs): Davies 71, Green 2-30

Somerset 191-6 (19.5 overs): Dickson 71*, Abell 51, Hannon-Dalby 3-24

By four wickets, Somerset won.

On a nail-biting night under the lights of Taunton, Sean Dickson led Somerset to a record-equalling 11th appearance at T20 Blast finals day as the Bears’ quarter-final curse once more took hold.

With one ball left, Dickson hit Ed Barnard for two sixes and a four to send his team over the line. The final score required 19 to prevail.

The 34-year-old started at 80-3 with 11 runs per over required, but he first supported Tom Abell (51) before taking center stage with an unbeaten 71 coming from 26 balls. A Somerset victory appeared unlikely.

Bears arrived in the south west as underdogs after playing their first game in the Blast since 2023 and fielding a side without an international player.

Rob Yates (25) hammering 24 from Australian paceman Meredith’s first set of six when Davies struck the final ball of Craig Overton’s opening over for four.

With their first six overs to go, the visitors ran to 82-1, setting a new tournament record.

Davies recorded 71 runs with 13 fours in a final T20 innings at Taunton, but when he became one of Ben Green’s (2-30) two victims, the Bears lost momentum. Only 63 of those runs came from the final 8.3 overs, and for the first time in Blast history, a side failed to hit a six until the final T20 innings at Taunton.

Somerset’s first innings was more difficult than their opponents’, with the home crowd’s performance unusually subdued as their team consistently lost wickets.

When Dickson joined Abell at the wicket, the home side’s chances of winning a third title sounded to be waning. They still needed 111 more runs from under 10 overs when the latter fell for 51 with 57 still needed.

Despite having a short match time in the format, Hannon-Dalby (34) bowled superbly, but the South African kept Somerset in the game while wickets fell at the other end.