Somerset 166 for 6 (Trego 70, van der Merwe 40) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 155 for 8 (ten Doeschate 46, van der Merwe 2-23) by 11 runs
Somerset out-fielded and out-bowled Kolkata Knight Riders to push them to the brink of elimination, but an ice-cool Ryan ten Doeschate hauled them alongside their opponents into the main draw of the Champions League. Kolkata needed 153 to qualify after Somerset had waltzed to an imposing 166 for 6 on a track that kept slowing down through the day. At 57 for 4 in the 10th over, they seemed to have lost the final spot to Ruhuna, but ten Doeschate pulled off a special heist to ensure there will be four IPL teams in the main draw.
Ruhuna ended up the biggest losers of the day, and Kolkata celebrated jubilantly despite falling short 11 of victory, but Somerset deserved the most praise. They arrived for the qualifiers bleary-eyed and dispirited, two days after losing their fifth domestic final in two years, and without five of their first-choice players. If they were knackered, they didn't show it: Peter Trego batted with freedom despite not playing an ugly shot, Roelof van der Merwe was typically tigerish with bat and on the field, and the three-pronged spin attack was ruthless to the end.
Kolkata were at the other end of the spectrum, and their struggles were epitomised by the inability of Manoj Tiwary and Shreevats Goswami - batsmen bred on slow tracks - to force the pace against spin. That Kolkata had lost the in-form Manvinder Bisla and captain Jacques Kallis did not help matters, and things became worse when the legspinner Max Waller disloged both Tiwary and Goswami. Thereafter, ten Doeschate owned the night.
He announced himself with a lofted drive that Nick Compton palmed over the ropes at long-off, but that was the closest ten Doeschate came to being dismissed. With the asking-rate hovering out of reach, he dabbed Trego through point before whipping Arul Suppiah over midwicket. Yusuf Pathan was surprisingly subdued in his brief stay, but by the time he exited it was clear that the wicket that mattered was at the other end.
A dashing 70 from Peter Trego lauched Somerset to 166 for 6, a score that should leave them confident of sealing a spot in the main draw of the Champions League. Their efforts were also aided by Kolkata's fielding, which was far-removed from the charged-up performance that earned them a last-ball win against Auckland. There were too many fumbles, the odd overthrow, and a general air of sloppiness that allowed Somerset to motor along. Trego cashed in with an impressive effort and, aided by a frenetic 40 from Roelof van der Merwe, left Kolkata needing at least 153 to confirm their qualification.
After a few initial stutters, Somerset showed they had better methods against spin than their county rivals Leicestershire had displayed earlier in the day. Unlike Ruhuna's tweakers, Kolkata's - with the notable exception of Iqbal Abdulla - weren't consistent with their lengths, forcing Jacques Kallis to rely on seamers more than he would have liked. In a sense, that played into Somerset's hands on a wicket that was slowing up considerably.
The free-stroking Chris Jones edged Brett Lee behind in the fourth over, but not before he had showed enough urgency in Trego's company to set the innings on course. Trego charged Abdulla early, and was lucky to get away with a heave that was outside-edged to third man, but did not let that alter his approach. Van der Merwe too gradually got used to the conditions, and was soon smiting anything short or full.
Somerset were 56 for 1 after eight overs, at which point Trego shifted gears against Rajat Bhatia's mind-numbingly predictable lack of pace. Trego lost his balance while pulling him for four before cutting late for another boundary. The next over went for 17 as van der Merwe exploded against a raft of long-hops from Yusuf Pathan. Jaidev Unadkat gave Kolkata some respite when he got van der Merwe pulling to midwicket, but James Hildreth ensured there was no let-up in the tempo, sweeping Abdulla on either side of the pitch for boundaries.
Unadkat's change of pace ended Hildreth's effort, but Trego bustled along unfettered, scoring his boundaries with a series of correct strokes. Unadkat was drilled through the covers, Jacques Kallis pulled through midwicket, and the Kolkata shoulders began to droop in a hurry. They were further aggrieved when Nick Compton deliberately batted away a throw that would have run him out on 0. Compton celebrated by ramping Lee over fine-leg for a six that was as cheeky as the run-out escape.
Trego was starved of strike a touch in the end overs, but it did not seem to matter as Compton continued to find inventive boundaries. More importantly for Somerset, Kolkata stayed generous right to the last over, with Unadkat making a hash of a regulation save at midwicket, and Lee getting a wicket of a no-ball.
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