Surrey vs Kent Spitfires: Preview
KENT SPITFIRESPreviewed by Fred Atkins, ECB Reporters Network supported by RothesayCaptain: Sam BillingsOverseas players: Wes Agar (Australia, all group matches) Tom Rogers (Australia, all group matches)Finals Day appearances: Four (2007, 2008, 2009, 2021)Titles: Two (2007, 2021)2024 finish: Ninth (South Group)2024 leading runscorer: Sam Billings (411)2024 leading wicket taker: Matt Parkinson (16)Key winter moves: Rogers was an emergency signing last year and enjoyed himself so much he said he’d come back for free (although he is being paid). Agar was only supposed to play red-ball cricket last year but did enough as emergency cover to earn a multi-format deal. Chris Benjamin’s arrival from Bears should add some firepower.The big question: Will the return of Fred Klaassen galvanise a bowling unit that was badly exposed last year? The Dutch international missed most of 2023 and all of 2024. Inexperienced replacements were severely punished for the slightest lapses in length, line or both, but Klaassen offers both a wicket-taking threat and a level of discipline and control severely lacking last season.Wildcard watch: Daniel Bell-Drummond. The stylish right-hander is without a The Hundred team after previous stints at London Spirit and Birmingham Phoenix. He’s a safe bet for any team looking for top-order hitting with more than 4,000 Vitality Blast runs to his name at a strike rate close to 140, while he enjoyed a profitable 2024 with 373 runs which included three half-centuries.Final thought: Does any side blow as hot and cold as Kent have done in the last few seasons? They won the Blast in 2021, finished bottom of the South Group in 2022, were unlucky not to reach the quarter-finals in 2023 and struggled again in 2024. If this pattern continues they should be due a good season, and seven of the 2021 champions (Crawley, Bell-Drummond, Joe Denly, Billings, Leaning, Stewart and Klaassen) remain at the club.
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