The Surrey County Club scripted history in the County 2023 Division One match by chasing mammoth 501 runs against Kent on Wednesday (June 14). The chase by Surrey was the second highest in the history of the prestigious County Championship. Notably, Middlesex (502 runs) still holds the record for the highest chase in County cricket.
Winning the toss and opting to bat first, Kent struggled against the Surrey bowlers and lost three of their top five batters for a duck. However, Jordan Cox hammered a brilliant 133 runs for his team and ensured that Kent finished their innings on a decent score of 301.
After bundling out Kent, Surrey failed to get even closer to their score and were bowled out for just 145 runs. Matthew Quinn and Wes Agar bagged three wickets each for Kent and played a major role in dismantling the Surrey line-up.
Further in the match, Kent yet again showed an impressive batting display and ended their innings on a total of 344 with an overall lead of 500 runs. Tawanda Muyeye top-scored for Kent and added 79 runs for them. Meanwhile, Hamidullah Qadri contributed 72 runs as well. Jordan Clark picked a five-wicket haul among Surrey bowlers.
Chasing a daunting total of 501 runs in the fourth innings, Surrey showcased a brilliant batting approach, with three of the team’s batters smashing hundreds and helping the side pull off a record run chase in the tournament’s history. Dom Sibley was the major contributor to the historic feat, as he scored 140 runs off 415 deliveries. In the meantime, the other notable contributions were from Ben Foakes (124) and Jamie Smith (114).
Apart from the record run chase, the match also saw a unique feat of the slowest century in County cricket that was attained by Sibley, who reached the three-figure mark in 368 deliveries and 511 minutes.
