Young all-rounder ne 44 ball mein career-best 77* banaye, Sussex ko 202-4 tak pohchane mein bada haath raha. Unki stylish batting aur dimaag se khela gaya aggression dekh ke X pe log wah-wah kar rahe the—ek ne toh bola, “Coles ka fabulous knock!” aur doosra keh raha tha, “62 off 39, bhai ne shuruvaat hi superb ki!” Daniel Hughes ne bhi 20 ball mein jaldi-jaldi 38 maare, aur Tom Clark ne 26* ke saath Coles ke saath 88 run ki unbeaten partnership daal di, jisse Sussex 200 ke paar gaya.
Middlesex ke liye 203 ka target tha, par woh run rate ke saath taal nahi mila sake. Ben Geddes (51) aur Ryan Higgins (44 off 16) ne thodi fight dikhaayi, par baaki line-up chup. Kane Williamson, jo T20 Blast mein pehli baar khel raha tha, 14 run banake out ho gaya—Harrison Ward ne deep point pe ekdum filmy dive maar ke catch pakda (aur thodi si pant bhi girte-girte bachi!). Middlesex 17 over mein 136-5 pe tha, aur Higgins ke aakhri dhamake ke bawajood 186-7 pe ruk gaya. Ollie Robinson ne 3-27 ke saath Middlesex ki kamar tod di, apni pace aur variations se aakhri overs mein kaam tamam kiya.
Sussex ki batting solid thi—Coles, Hughes, aur Clark ne Lord’s ke balanced pitch pe faida uthaaya, jahan shuru mein seamers ko thodi movement milti hai, par batsman set ho jaye toh run banta hai. Robinson ke saath captain Tymal Mills ne bhi bowling mein dimaag lagaaya, aur death overs mein game haath se nahi jaane diya. Sussex ka predicted XI, jisme Harrison Ward, Tom Alsop, aur Jack Carson jaise bande the, unki 2024 wali semi-final form ko dikha raha tha.
Middlesex ke liye yeh haar 2024 ke kharab season (14 mein sirf 3 jeet) ke baad aur dukh de gayi. Williamson ke aane se ummeed thi—uske T20 mein 6,675 run hain, average 32 ka—par team mein josh nahi dikha. Pehle ke top scorer Martin Andersson ke Derbyshire jaane se bhi batting weak hui. Middlesex ka predicted XI, jisme Stevie Eskinazi, Leus du Plooy, aur Max Holden the, thik-thak tha, par Sussex ke tight bowling aur Coles ke dhamakedaar performance ke aage nahi tik paaya.
Yeh match 2025 T20 Blast ka mood set kar gaya. Sussex ne dikhaya ke woh 2024 ke semi-final se aage jaane ke liye taiyaar hai, jabki Middlesex ko ab dobara josh jagana padega. Cloudy weather mein khela gaya yeh match bata gaya ke Lord’s pe pehle bowling leni chahiye, jahan 170–180 ka score defendable hota hai. Sussex ne 202 banake aur defend karke apni full taiyaari dikhaayi, aur Coles ka all-round dhamaka aur Robinson ki killer bowling ne match jeetwaya.
