Glamorgan’s emphatic victory over Somerset on Friday evening at The SSE SWALEC means that they have qualified for the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast and if they maintain their position in the top two of the table after the last pair of group games next week (away to the Sussex Sharks and the Essex Eagles) they will secure a home quarter-final against the teams finishing either third or fourth in the North Group.
The Welsh county have reached the quarter-final stages of the 20 overs competition on three previous occasions – 2004, 2008 and 2014. Back in July 2004, a crowd of around 8,500 saw Glamorgan defeat the Warwickshire Bears by five wickets in their quarter-final tie at Cardiff to secure a place at T20 Finals Day at Edgbaston. This was after the Bears had set the Welsh county a target of 159. Glamorgan slipped to 2/2, but Matthew Elliott found a noble ally in David Hemp, as they rebuilt the innings with a partnership of 118 for the third wicket as Glamorgan eased to victory with an over to spare.
This victory saw Glamorgan head on August 7th, 2004 to Finals Day at Edgbaston where they met the Leicestershire Foxes in the semi-final. However, Darren Maddy blitzed a quick-fire 72 from 40 balls to see his side to a decent total of 165/5 from their 20 overs. The Welsh county then lost their top-order during the first six overs, and despite the best efforts of David Hemp and Mark Wallace, they could not wrest back the initiative as the Foxes won by 21 runs.
Glamorgan’s next quarter-final appearance came in 2008 when they lost to the Durham Dynamos at Chester-le-Street by 44 runs in a contest where the Welsh county had been a late call-up after the Yorkshire Vikings were disqualified having fielded an ineligible player. Glamorgan had won their final group match after defeating the Worcestershire Royals by six wickets and had left the New Road ground believing that they were out of the competition, only to be re-instated a week or so later by the ECB for the match at Chester-le-Street.
The match saw the Welsh county start well as James Harris bowled Phil Mustard in his opening over before David Harrison trapped Paul Collingwood l.b.w. in the next over. Harris then deceived Shivnarine Chanderpaul with a slower delivery as the West Indian batsman spooned a ball to David Hemp at mid-off as the Dynamos slipped to 26/3. But Michael Di Venuto, Will Smith and Dale Benkenstein oversaw a recovery as the home side ended on 163/8.
Liam Plunkett continued the damage as with the first ball of the innings he bowled Richard Grant, before David Hemp was caught behind off the fifth ball. Michael Powell was caught at cover in the fifth over as Glamorgan slumped to 23/3 before Jamie Dalrymple and Tom Maynard steadied the ship but the task of needing 104 off the last nine overs proved to be too great.
2014 saw Glamorgan reach the quarter-final stages again, meeting the Lancashire Lightning at Old Trafford. After the loss of the first day to rain, play began on the reserve day in mid-afternoon and with Glamorgan needing 46 off 36 balls with Murray Goodwin and Jacques Rudolph at the crease, it looked like they might reach their first Finals Day for ten years. But Jordan Clark entered the attack at the Statham End and bowled Goodwin, before adding the scalps of Chris Cooke and Stewart Walters in the space of three balls, before David Lloyd edged to slip as the triple wicket maiden saw Glamorgan nosedive to 100/6.
Rain briefly interrupted the Welsh county’s innings with 38 needed from 24 balls. Rudolph then calmly worked the ball around as the target became six off the last ball which under the playing regulations would have given Glamorgan a victory by virtue of losing fewer wickets. As Clark ran in, he only had three men in the fielding circle, but he stopped just before reaching the umpire, brought his long-leg up into the ring and then bowled a ball which Andrew Salter smeared for four. Had Clark not stopped, this would have given Glamorgan the six runs needed to tie the game, with Salter then having to fend off the extra ball and scramble a single to clinch victory
This match in 2014 at Old Trafford showed just how narrow the margins are between winning and losing in Twenty20 cricket and Glamorgan’s supporters will be hoping their quarter-final contest this summer will not be such a nail-biter, and will result in a win for the Welsh county and a place at Finals Day for the first time since 2004.