James Vince: "Finals Day Is A Pretty Special Day To Be A Part Of"

James Vince has never been short of big days at Utilita Bowl, but even by his standards, this one stands out.

The Hampshire Hawks captain produced the highest-ever Vitality Blast T20 knockout score, smashing 125 from 61 balls to send Hampshire to a record 12th Finals Day, as the Hawks beat Essex by 75 runs in the quarter-final. It was Vince's eighth T20 century, and his second specifically against Essex, edging past Moeen Ali's previous knockout record of 121, set back in the 2019 quarter-finals.

Speaking after the win, "We are over the moon. Now we have another final to look forward to. A couple of guys in our team, like Hilts [Hilton Cartwright] missed out last year so it's such a great day, delighted that he'll also get to experience that and obviously that we're there and we've got an opportunity to win the competition."

Vince was made to work for it early on. Sent in by Essex captain Simon Harmer, he found the going tough against Sam Cook's new ball swing before the innings clicked into gear. Toby Albert put on 60 with his captain, and Joe Weatherley added a further 117, including his own 46 from 26 balls, as Hampshire powered to 211 for 3.

Reflecting on the innings, Vince said: "The first few overs were a bit slow getting off the mark but the wicket was an international wicket, after a high scoring game that was, but it's four days on and it looked pretty dry so yeah we had a look and then I thought when Weathers [Joe Weatherley] came in, the impetus he gave it made a big difference.

"Then, with the ball, Sonny [Baker] getting those early wickets for a fairly top heavy batting line up, you know the game's never done but after those early wickets, the odds were in our favour."

Baker was the other star of the day, taking a career best five wickets as Essex were bowled out for 136. The young seamer struck three times inside his first two overs, removing Paul Walter, Jordan Cox and Michael Pepper, before returning later to have Harmer lbw and bowl Shane Snater, finishing with figures of five for 24.

On Baker's performance, Vince said: "We spoke about the importance of top order wickets with some dangerous players in their top five. I thought Sonny bowled excellently, backed up really well in the field."

For Vince personally, the knock capped what he had considered a quieter tournament by his usual standards, even though he now holds more than a thousand runs more than anyone else in Blast history.

"It felt good. I have felt okay this tournament, a few 50s but coming into the quarter finals and knockout cricket it's nice to make a good contribution and hopefully I can take that form into Saturday," he said.

Attention now turns to Edgbaston, where Hampshire will face Notts Outlaws in the second semi final on Finals Day this Saturday, 18 July, as the Hawks chase a record fourth Vitality Blast T20 title.

"I think anyone that's still in the competition at this stage is obviously a good side and playing good cricket, so yeah, we know it will be a tough test," Vince said. "I think they've got a fairly well balanced side with mixture of right and left handers, so I'm sure it'll be a tough game, but hopefully if we can put in a performance like that hopefully it's good enough to get another crack in the final."

And on what a 12th Finals Day appearance means to him, Vince was reflective. "It's big. I'm not getting any younger and you get to the stage when it's on the line that you've got the opportunity to go there again, and we spoke yesterday as a group about what a great day it is, that obviously you're in with a chance of winning the competition, which is the most important thing, but Finals Day is a pretty special day to be a part of."