Vitality Twenty20 Blast Quarter-Final: Notts Outlaws vs Middlesex - Hales and Nash smash Outlaws into Semi-FInal

An unbroken opening partnership between Alex Hales and Chris Nash saw Notts Outlaws comfortably through to finals day against Middlesex.

Photo from The Cricketer

Notts Outlaws - 165-0 / 160-8 - Middlesex
Notts Outlaws thrashed Middlesox by 10 eickets on their way to qualifying for the T20 Blast Finals Day.
It will be their third appearance at Edgbaston in the last four seasons for the 2017 champions, who made light work of the 161 total set by the Lord's team.
The hosts' openers Alex Hales and Chris Nash made 83 not out and 74 not out respectively as they coasted to the target with 22 balls to spare.
The mainstay of the Middlesex innings was England's white-ball captain Eoin Morgan's 53 off 31 balls, at the ground where his England team twice broke the world record for highest team score in ODIs.
His team got to 160-8 but were in trouble early on with AB de Villiers making just 11 at 43-4.
Joining Essex Eagles at Finals Day, Notts' Hales was omitted from England's World Cup-winning squad this summer due to off-field matters, and will go to play in the Caribbean Premier League for Barbados Tridents on Friday before returning for the Blast showpiece on 21 September.
In his 47-ball knock, he hit six fours and seven sixes while his opening partner Nash hit 10 fours and one six in his 53-ball blitz, the latter playing in the Blast for the first time this season.
In their first meeting with the Outlaws in T20 cricket, Middlesex lost in their first appearance in quarter-finals since 2015.
Opening partners Paul Stirling and Dawid Malan along with de Villiers and Stephen Eskinazi were lost in the first seven overs after being put in to bat.
Morgan helped to resurrection of the innings with John Simpson's 25 and Toby Roland-Jones' 26, but he fell the ball after making his 50 as Middlesex looked to set a big target.
Any chances of restricting Notts would have required wickets in the six-over powerplay - which didn't happen.
Instead Hales and Nash came out of it at 76 without loss, profiting from sloppy fielding with Nash dropped in 31 and Hales twice on 47 and 56.
Hales hit the winning runs with his seventh six, bringing the curtain down on a dominant win.

SCORECARD
Notts Outlaws won the toss and decided to field
Notts Outlaws won by 10 wickets

Middlesex Innings
Batsman: How Out - Bowler / Runs / Balls / SR (4s, 6s)
Stirling: c Libby - b Carter / 11 / 12 / 91.67 (2, 0)
Malan: b Carter / 2 / 9 / 22.22 (0, 0)
Eskinazi: c Moores - b Wasim / 13 / 11 / 118.18 (2, 0)
de Villiers: c Duckett - b Wasim / 11 / 9 / 122.22 (1, 0)
Morgan: c Nash - b Gurney / 53 / 31 / 170.97 (1, 4)
Simpson: c Hales - b Patel / 25 / 21 / 119.05 (2, 0)
Roland-Jones: c Duckett - b Wood / 26 / 19 / 136.84 (2, 1)
Helm: c Hales - b Gurney / 5 / 6 / 83.33 (0, 0)
Sowter: not out / 3 / 3 / 100.00 (0, 0)
Finn: not out / 0 / 0 / 0.00 (0, 0)

Extras 2nb 4w 4b 1lb 11

Total (20.0 overs) 160-8

Bowler: Overs / Maidens / Runs / Wickets / Econ
Wood 4.0 / 0 / 27 / 1 / 6.75
Carter 4.0 / 0 / 16 / 2 / 4.00
Wasim 4.0 / 0 / 31 / 2 / 7.75
Gurney 4.0 / 0 / 44 / 2 / 11.00
Patel 2.0 / 0 / 23 / 1 / 11.50
Christian 2.0 / 0 / 14 / 0 / 7.00


Fall of Wicket - Batsman
17-1 (3.1 ovs) - Stirling
19-2 (3.6 ovs) - Malan
43-3 (6.4 ovs) - de Villiers
43-4 (6.5 ovs) - Eskinazi
90-5 (12.3 ovs) - Simpson
148-6 (17.6 ovs) - Morgan
155-7 (18.6 ovs) - Roland-Jones
158-8 (19.4 ovs) - Helm

Notts Outlaws InningsBatsman: How Out - Bowler / Runs / Balls / SR (4s, 6s)
Nash: not out / 74 / 53 / 139.62 (10, 1)
Hales: not out / 83 / 47 / 176.60 (6, 7)

Extras 4nb 2w 0b 2lb 8 

Total (16.2 overs) 165-0

Bowler: Overs / Maidens / Runs / Wickets / Econ
Mujeeb: 4.0 / 0 / 41 / 0 / 10.25
Roland-Jones: 3.0 / 0 / 25 / 0 / 8.33
Helm: 3.2 / 0 / 37 / 0 / 11.11
Sowter: 4.0 / 0 / 32 / 0 / 8.00
Finn: 2.0 / 0 / 28 / 0 / 14.00

Draw
Lancashire Lightning v Essex Eagles, Essex Eagles won by six wickets
Gloucestershire v Derbyshire Falcons,
Notts Outlaws v Middlesex, Notts Outlaws won by 10 wickets
Sussex Sharks v Worcestershire Rapids,
=
Essex Eagles v
Notts Outlaws v
=
v

Final Group Stage Standings

NORTH GROUP

#	TEAM	PLD	W	D	L	PTS
1	Lancashire Lightning	14	8	0	2	20
2	Notts Outlaws	14	6	0	4	16
3	Derbyshire Falcons	14	7	0	5	16
4	Worcestershire Rapids	14	6	0	5	15
5	Yorkshire Vikings	14	4	0	5	13
6	Durham Jets	14	5	0	7	12
7	Northamptonshire Steelbacks	14	4	0	6	12
8	Birmingham Bears	14	4	0	7	11
9	Leicestershire Foxes	14	4	0	7	11

SOUTH GROUP

#	TEAM	PLD	W	D	L	PTS
1	Sussex Sharks	14	8	0	3	19
2	Gloucestershire	14	7	0	3	18
3	Middlesex	14	7	0	6	15
4	Essex Eagles	14	5	0	4	15
5	Kent Spitfires	14	6	0	6	14
6	Somerset	14	6	0	7	13
7	Hampshire	14	5	0	6	13
8	Surrey	14	5	0	7	12
9	Glamorgan	14	1	0	8	7

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