Heroics of the highest order from Matthew Montgomery saw a thrilling Metro Bank One Day Cup contest in Canterbury end in the most dramatic of wins for Peter Moores’ Notts Outlaws.
Lyndon James’ 4/45 helped Notts recover in the second half of Kent’s innings after a strong start from the hosts, before Montgomery’s magnificent unbeaten 92 from 84 balls saw the Outlaws snatch victory with just one ball to spare at the Spitfire Ground.
The hosts, opting to set the target after winning the toss, began steadily as Ben Compton and Daniel Bell-Drummond built their 50 run partnership within the first 11 overs.
The first half of the innings brought little opportunity for Notts to stem the flow, with only a couple of near run-outs worthy of note, and the Kent openers cruised to 132 at the halfway mark.
Shortly after the drinks break, the Outlaws began to hit back through Liam Patterson-White, who made a smart instinctive catch off his own bowling to dismiss Compton for 59.
Compton's opening partner followed three overs later, feathering Tom Loten to Dane Schadendorf to end a classy innings of 79 from 89 deliveries.
Dane Paterson, switching ends, very nearly effected a carbon copy of Compton’s dismissal, but Alex Blake just evaded his fingertips to find the boundary with a drive to long-on.
Lyndon James shortly made his own contribution when he was guided into the hands of Martindale at extra cover by Blake, before skipper Hameed ran out Harry Finch at the striker’s end to steer momentum towards Notts.
Schadendorf then used his quick wits to catch Jaydn Denly off his crease complete the stumping off Harrison, as wickets continued to come in quick succession.
Paterson finally earned his slice of the action after striking the pad of Grant Stewart - who earned Kent a very handy 25 runs from just 15 deliveries - before Sammy King helped James to his fourth wicket with a simple catch deep in the field.
The hosts subsequently posted 259/9, with the Outlaws openers - Bens Slater and Martindale - then off to a bright start after the interval, amassing 50 runs without reply.
A mistimed reverse sweep, however, saw Slater bowled by Qadri in the 16th over. His replacement, Lyndon James, quickly followed at the same hands.
Martindale looked to continue leading from the front with the bat, until a freak dismissal brought an otherwise commendable effort to an abrupt end. Compton combined with Gilchrist to run out the opener, whose instinctive flinch came at his undoing, being adjudged to have not grounded his bat in time.
Captain Hameed and Matthew Montgomery then joined up to rebuild the chase, amassing 38 between them, but the hosts hit back at Hameed with the help of a fine delivery from Gilchrist.
Patterson-White, King and Schadendorf came and went within the space of nine overs, whilst Montgomery stood firm and chalked up a defiant half-century from 49 deliveries.
If not for Montgomery’s heroics with the bat, the game could have been over much sooner. With Harrison and Loten gone, caught by Compton and Finch respectively, and just over five overs remaining, the Outlaws’ chase remained hanging by a thread.
But, supported by Dane Paterson, Montgomery continued to soldier on despite the heavy pressure, chipping away at the 35 runs required from 5.1 overs. A monumental maximum in the 47th over helped the duo on their way, while Paterson contributed with a well-driven four in the following over.
Requiring seven from the final six deliveries, the pair stood firm to deny Kent a near-certain win, snatching the most crucial of wins in trying circumstances in the South East.
The Outlaws will continue their hunt for a quarter-final place, pending results elsewhere over the weekend, next Tuesday, 22 August, hosting Lancashire at the John Fretwell Centre for the final group stage game.
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