Vitality Blast T20 tournament enters new era with men’s and women’s sides playing side by side for the first time

The Vitality Blast is the world’s original domestic T20 cricket competition that delivers fast-paced and explosive action in front of passionate and diverse fans across England and Wales.

Hampshire’s players will again don their iconic yellow T20 kits this season, lifting the curtain on their 2025 campaign with a double-header against Essex at Utilita Bowl on Friday.

The opening fixture forms part of the tournament’s ‘Blast-Off’ round of fixtures, and will see the likes of Ben Brown, Liam Dawson, Georgia Adams and Maia Bouchier all be hoping to kick off their campaigns in style.

Hampshire Hawks are the joint-most successful men’s domestic side in T20 history, having won the competition three times.

They will be hoping to bounce back from the disappointment of last year’s competition, where the side narrowly missed out on reaching finals day, and will be strengthened by the return of captain James Vince.

Vince, a product of Hampshire’s successful youth pathway, has played in all of the side’s winning finals, in 2010, 2012 and 2022.

Vince moved to Dubai with his family earlier this year but is returning to captain the Hawks for this year’s Vitality Blast.

Leading the Hawks’ women’s side is Georgia Adams, who previously captained Southern Vipers, the former regional team based at Utilita Bowl and the most successful women’s domestic regional team.

Looking ahead to this season’s competition, Adams said: “It’s a really exciting time at the club.

‘The whole team is ready to go out there and put in strong performances for the first time under the Hampshire name.

“We’ve started well in the one-day cup and now it’s down to us to keep that momentum going.

‘Despite the name change, a big percentage of the squad have achieved great things together in T20, and now we’re all set on trying to repeat that success.”

The men’s competition is entering its 22nd year, while the women’s teams will compete across two Vitality Blast events, one contested by the eight counties from Tier One, including Hampshire, and the second featuring the 10 remaining counties.

A total of 52 double-headers at 20 venues will take place across the competitions, with the Blast-Off weekend kicking things off from tomorrow through to Sunday.

The competition will dominate June and July before the group stage coming to a high-stakes conclusion with ‘Friday Finale’ on July 18.

‘Friday Finale’ will see the women race for the three Finals Day spots while the men have a last chance to book their place in the quarter-finals. In all, their are ight men’s matches scheduled and all eight women’s counties in action.

The first-ever Vitality Blast Women’s Finals Day will be staged at the Kia Oval on Sunday July 27 while the established Vitality Blast Men’s Finals Day taking place at Edgbaston on Saturday September 13.

Tickets are still available for Friday’s double-header between Hampshire Hawks and Essex at Utilita Bowl. Visit www.utilitabowl.com/cricket/tickets