Kent Spitfires skipper Sam Billings has urged his batting line-up to “work out your game” after another failed run chase.
Spitfires appeared well set to chase down Hampshire Hawks’ 190-3 on Sunday but lost wickets regularly after a solid base in reply, losing by 19 runs to severely dent their Vitality Blast hopes.
It’s not the first time this summer Kent’s batting has let them down in the competition.
“You have to work out your game and understand how you’re going to score at a 150 or 160 strike rate consistently, and different people have different options,” stated Billings.
“Grant Stewart’s going to play differently to Harry Finch or Chris Benjamin or whoever it is. So, it’s working out your game and being really clear with your options, especially against different bowlers as well.
“It’s the toughest place to bat, the middle order, in T20 cricket. That is why the best players in the world bat in that position.
“AB de Villiers is the perfect example. That’s why he could do anything and that’s why I’ve always liked taking on that mantle.
“It was frustrating not to get us across the line, but I think trying to pass on that knowledge and get guys to really understand their game and get clarity around their game, that’s where we need to learn quicker because we’re making the same mistakes over and over.”
Spitfires have produced some excellent cricket at times this summer and their victories against Surrey and Hampshire are obvious standouts.
But their lows have been hard to take, particularly being skittled out for just 59 at Worcestershire last Friday, and that’s just added to the pain for Billings.
“It adds to the frustration,” he said. “Essex are a good side, but I felt like they were two games we gave them, really.
“Obviously, down at Sussex was another game that we played poorly.
“Great teams in any format, their worst performance is about a five or six out of 10, the odd day here and there.
“But at the moment we’re either having two out of 10 days or nine out of 10 days and that’s probably more frustrating as well.
“We’ve got all the ingredients to be a really good side, we just haven’t pieced it together at all and haven’t really played collectively probably as well as we have done in the past.
“We’ve either been really good up the top or we’ve struggled in the middle or vice-versa really, certainly with the bat.
“We just haven’t really pieced it together this year.”
Despite those shortcomings, Kent still have an outside chance of making the knockout stages of this year’s competition.
However, they need to beat both Surrey tomorrow (Friday) and Middlesex on Sunday at Canterbury to have any chance.
“I’m hopeful that we can win two out of two and, who knows, a few things go our way in other groups and we might sneak in, but that’s all we can do,” said Billings.
“All we can focus on is two games of cricket and trying to get eight points.
“Essex lost on Sunday so there’s a glimmer of hope, but we have to start relying on other teams now as opposed to being in our own destiny, which is just a shame because I think we’re a lot better side than what we’ve shown.
“We’re not out of it. We have to wait for other groups, obviously, to see how that pans out. But if we win two games, you never know, you might sneak in as a third place side.”
Spitfires will have Bangladesh paceman Hasan Mahmud available again this weekend.
He took 1-25 on his Kent T20 debut at Hampshire and Billings compared him to England’s current premier fast bowler.
“He looked quality,” said Billings. “He’s very clear with how he wants to go about his business.
“He’s a lot quicker than he looks. He’s a bit like Jofra Archer, how he’s smooth in, has a similar kind of hyper-extension and whips it at a quick pace.
“He looks like a great find and I’m looking forward to hopefully seeing him in a Kent jersey for a long period of time.”
