Jeetan Patel will be the solitary Kiwi in England's NatWest Twenty20 Blast Finals Day on 23 August after his Birmingham Bears were the only team featuring New Zealanders to make it through the quarterfinal weekend.
Colin Munro and Mitchell McClenaghan's Worcestershire Rapids were knocked out by Surrey at the Oval on Saturday. Munro contributed five runs while McClenaghan was three not out at the close of Worcestershire's sub-par 141. Despite losing seven wickets, including one to McClenaghan, Surrey got home in 16.3 overs to put the Kiwis out.
From here, Munro leaves to join NZA on their tour of the UK, while McClenaghan stays on.
James Franklin and Andre Adams' Nottinghamshire Outlaws were eliminated by Hampshire by five wickets, with Franklin not required to bat and only having the opportunity to bowl one over.
Jesse Ryder took 20 runs from nine balls at the top of his Essex Eagles' innings before being caught by Patel from Recordo Gordon's bowling. Patel went on to concede just seven runs from his first two overs, and a tight 23 from his compliment of four. Despite a brutal 61 from 37 overs by Otago's Ryan ten Doeschate, the Eagles fell 19 runs short of the Birmingham Bears' 197 runs, securing the latters' place in the finals weekend.
Kane Williamson has re-joined Yorkshire, and has continued his run of West Indian form in the Royal London One-Day Cup, and in the LV County Championship Divison One, averaging 42.11. Yorkshire sit four points clear at the top of the table, and will next be in action on 15 August v Sussex.
In the Caribbean Premier League, New Zealanders sit in the first, second and third positions, with Ross Taylor' s Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel tied with Dan Vettori's Jamaica Tallawahs with 12 points each, while Jimmy Neesham and Martin Guptil's Guyana Amazon Warriors are third.
In the latest round of games Taylor was unbeaten on 35 from 39 balls as he guided the Red Steel to an eight wicket win, along with Evin Lewis, who scored 59 from 39. Taylor is averaging 37.25 with the bat for the competition so far.
Vettori's Tallawahs took on Guptil and Neesham's Amazon Warriors on Saturday, with Vettori claiming Guptil's wicket for 15 runs, while Neesham had more luck, striking 35 from 26, before the Tallawahs ran away with the match by six wickets.
With a handful of rounds remaining before the finals series, there's a good chance there will be a strong New Zealand presence at the pointy end of the competition.
