SURREY V KENT at the AMP Oval (B&H Cup), 4 MAY 2002

On paper Surrey should be every bit as effective in one-day cricket as they are over the longer format, but they are obviously doing something wrong as their poor start in the Benson and Hedges Cup makes tomorrow’s outcome irrelevant.

At the beginning of the season you would have said that this encounter and the one on Bank Holiday Monday were the hardest two in the opening phase of the competition. But the home side go into the match against Kent at the AMP Oval with three successive defeats behind them. It’s the first time they have lost three B&H matches in the same season since 1991.

The visitors have won their last three limited-overs clashes with Surrey. Batting all the way down to James Golding at nine, they should not be short of runs. Andrew Symonds is the only one yet to fire in one-day cricket this season. He has made just 28 runs in three visits to the crease, so could be the danger. That said, the Queenslander has regularly featured with the ball and is currently Kent’s leading limited-overs wicket-taker.

20-year-old off-spinner James Tredwell looks set to continue in place of Min Patel.

Having been wrong FOUR times on the trot, the only thing I can predict about tomorrow’s game is that Surrey’s performance will be… unpredictable.

Mark Butcher stands aside for Graham Thorpe, who is available at long last, so Ian Ward is set to take over the reins as captain. Surrey resist the temptation of blooding Ben Scott, therefore Alec Stewart will continue as the gloveman. Rikki Clarke and Philip Sampson have been added to the squad, however, which means no Bicknell or Giddins but at least one player making their Benson and Hedges Cup debut just before the competition is scrapped to make way for next season’s ‘crash-bang-wallop’. How can we possibly wait another year to feed our craving for instant cricket?!

M Fleming (capt), R Key, J Hockley, A Symonds, E Smith, D Fulton, M Walker, P Nixon (wk), J Golding, M Saggers and J Tredwell.

14 Aug 2001	NL	Lost By 43 Runs	Canterbury
24 Jun 2001	NL	Lost By 2 Wickets	The Oval
7 May 2001	B&H	Lost By 1 Run	Canterbury
16 Apr 2000	B&H	No Result	The Oval
6 Sep 1998	NL	Won By 41 Runs	The Oval
6 May 1998	B&H	Won By 4 Wickets	Canterbury
12 Jul 1997	B&H	Won By 8 Wickets	Lord's
4 May 1997	NL	Lost By 12 Runs	Canterbury
28 Apr 1997	B&H	Lost By 4 Wickets	The Oval
12 May 1996	NL	Won By 150 Runs	The Oval
6 Aug 1995	NL	Lost By 55 Runs	Canterbury
25 Apr 1995	B&H	Lost By 93 Runs	Canterbury
18 Sep 1994	NL	Won By 24 Runs	The Oval
8 Aug 1993	NL	Lost By 54 Runs	Canterbury
10 Jun 1992	B&H	Lost By 2 Wickets	Canterbury
17 May 1992	NL	Lost By 3 Wickets	The Oval

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