The 2012 FriendsLife T20 was the tenth edition of what would later become the T20 Blast, England's premier domestic Twenty20 competition. The competition ran from 12 June to 25 August 2012. The teams in the tournament remained the same as the previous season.
The schedule of the tournament had been widely criticised the previous season and the ECB had decided to reduce the minimum number of days in which a county would play from 92 to 86 for 2012. This meant a change in format from 2 groups of 9, from which the top 4 would qualify to the quarter-finals, to an arrangement with 3 groups of 6. The format of the knock-out rounds (quarter-finals) remain unchanged. This reduces the number of matches in the competition from 151 to 97 in a return to the format of the 2008 and 2009 editions of the Twenty20 Cup.
Finals Day was at the SWALEC Stadium in Cardiff for the first time. Hampshire Royals and Yorkshire Carnegie, as the winners and runners-up of the tournament respectively, qualified for the 2012 Champions League Twenty20.
In the quarter-final match between Sussex and Gloucestershire, Scott Styris scored the equal third-fastest century in T20 history, after making 100 not out from 37 balls. In the same match, Gloucestershire's James Fuller conceded 38 runs from one over.
Format The 18 teams are divided into three groups of six and each group plays a double round-robin tournament. The top two teams from each group and the top two third-placed teams qualify for the knockout stage: a three-round single-elimination tournament. The top team from each group and the best second-placed team will each play in a different quarter-final at their home ground. A free draw determines the placement of the remaining four teams and the semi-final and final match-ups.
Teams Team Location County Division Home ground Coach Captain Overseas player(s)Derbyshire FalconsDerbyDerbyshireNorthCounty GroundKarl KrikkenWayne Madsen Usman Khawaja and Rana Naved-ul-HasanDurham DynamosChester-le-StreetCounty DurhamNorthRiverside GroundGeoff CookPhil Mustard Herschelle Gibbs and Johann MyburghEssex EaglesChelmsfordEssexSouthCounty GroundPaul GraysonJames Foster James FranklinGloucestershire GladiatorsBristolGloucestershireMidlands/Wales/WestNevil RoadJohn BracewellHamish Marshall Muttiah MuralitharanHampshire RoyalsSouthamptonHampshireSouthRose BowlGiles WhiteJames Adams Shahid Afridi and Glenn MaxwellKent SpitfiresCanterburyKentSouthSt Lawrence GroundJimmy AdamsRob Key Brendan NashLancashire LightningManchesterLancashireNorthOld TraffordPeter MooresGlen Chapple Yasir Arafat and Ashwell PrinceLeicestershire FoxesLeicesterLeicestershireNorthGrace RoadPhil WhitticaseMatthew Hoggard Abdul Razzaq and Ramnaresh SarwanMiddlesex PanthersLondonMiddlesexSouthLord'sRichard ScottNeil Dexter Chris RogersNorthamptonshire SteelbacksNorthamptonNorthamptonshireMidlands/Wales/WestCounty GroundDavid CapelAndrew Hall Chaminda Vaas and Cameron WhiteNottinghamshire OutlawsNottinghamNottinghamshireNorthTrent BridgeMick NewellChris Read Adam VogesSomersetTauntonSomersetMidlands/Wales/WestCounty GroundAndy HurryMarcus Trescothick Richard Levi and Albie MorkelSurrey LionsLondonSurreySouthThe OvalChris AdamsRory Hamilton-Brown Murali Kartik and Dirk NannesSussex SharksHoveSussexSouthCounty Cricket GroundMark RobinsonMichael Yardy Scott StyrisWarwickshire BearsBirminghamWarwickshireMidlands/Wales/WestEdgbastonAshley GilesJim Troughton Jeetan PatelWelsh DragonsCardiffGlamorganMidlands/Wales/WestSophia GardensMatthew MottJim Allenby Shaun Marsh and Marcus NorthWorcestershire RoyalsWorcesterWorcestershireMidlands/Wales/WestNew RoadSteve RhodesDaryl Mitchell Phillip Hughes and Sohail TanvirYorkshire CarnegieLeedsYorkshireNorthHeadingley CarnegieJason GillespieAndrew Gale David Miller and Mitchell Starc
Group stage
Midlands/Wales/West Division
Table
Results
Gloucestershire GladiatorsNorthamptonshire SteelbacksSomersetWarwickshire BearsWelsh DragonsWorcestershire Royals Gloucestershire Gladiators
| Northamptonshire Steelbacks
| Somerset
| Warwickshire Bears
| Welsh Dragons
| Worcestershire Royals
Fixtures
North Division
Table
Results
Derbyshire FalconsDurham DynamosLancashire LightningLeicestershire FoxesNottinghamshire OutlawsYorkshire Carnegie Derbyshire Falcons
| Durham Dynamos
| Lancashire Lightning
| Leicestershire Foxes
| Nottinghamshire Outlaws
| Yorkshire Carnegie
Fixtures
South Division
Table
Results
Essex EaglesHampshire RoyalsKent SpitfiresMiddlesex PanthersSurrey LionsSussex Sharks Essex Eagles
| Hampshire Royals
| Kent Spitfires
| Middlesex Panthers
| Surrey Lions
| Sussex Sharks
Fixtures
1. Game moved from Nevill Ground, Royal Tunbridge Wells due to flooding.
Knockout stage
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
Statistics
Highest team totals The following table lists the five highest team scores in the season. Team Total Opponent Ground Sussex Sharks 230/4 Gloucestershire Gladiators County Ground, Hove Worcestershire Royals 213/2 Gloucestershire Gladiators New Road, Worcester Yorkshire Carnegie 212/5 Worcestershire Royals Headingley Carnegie, Leeds Sussex Sharks 212/6 Kent Spitfires County Ground, Hove Nottinghamshire Outlaws 210/3 Durham Dynamos Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Most runs The top five highest run scorers (total runs) in the season are included in this table. Player Team Runs Inns Avg S/R HS 100s 50s 4s 6s Phillip Hughes Worcestershire Royals 402 8 100.50 126.81 87* 0 4 37 7 David Miller Yorkshire Carnegie 390 11 48.75 153.54 74* 0 4 30 21 Chris Nash Sussex Sharks 319 10 39.87 131.27 80* 0 3 32 8 Steven Croft Lancashire Lightning 313 8 62.60 129.33 65* 0 2 17 11 Luke Wright Sussex Sharks 312 10 34.66 160.00 91 0 2 32 11
Highest scores This table contains the top five highest scores of the season made by a batsman in a single innings. Player Team Score Balls 4s 6s Opponent Ground James Hildreth Somerset 107* 60 15 1 Welsh Dragons County Ground, Taunton Scott Styris Sussex Sharks 100* 37 5 9 Gloucestershire Gladiators County Ground, Hove Luke Wright Sussex Sharks 91 61 7 2 Middlesex Panthers County Ground, Hove Joe Denly Middlesex Panthers 90* 66 11 1 Kent Spitfires St Lawrence Ground, Canterbury Alex Hales Nottinghamshire Outlaws 88 51 6 4 Durham Dynamos Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Most wickets The following table contains the six leading wicket-takers of the season. Player Team Wkts Mts Ave S/R Econ BBI Mitchell Starc Yorkshire Carnegie 21 10 10.38 10.5 5.91 3/24 Chris Liddle Sussex Sharks 17 10 11.94 9.7 7.33 5/17 Reece Topley Essex Eagles 17 9 14.47 11.2 7.68 3/19 Dimitri Mascarenhas Hampshire Royals 15 11 16.46 15.2 6.50 2/11 Moin Ashraf Yorkshire Carnegie 15 12 23.93 18.8 7.63 4/18 Rich Pyrah Yorkshire Carnegie 15 12 23.93 18.0 7.97 3/21
Best bowling figures This table lists the top five players with the best bowling figures in the season. Player Team Overs Figures Opponent Ground Chris Liddle Sussex Sharks 4.0 5/17 Middlesex Panthers Lord's, London Greg Smith Essex Eagles 3.0 5/17 Kent Spitfires County Ground, Chelmsford Gareth Batty Surrey Lions 4.0 4/13 Middlesex Panthers Lord's, London Max Waller Somerset 4.0 4/16 Warwickshire Bears County Ground, Taunton Ian Saxelby Gloucestershire Gladiators 4.0 4/16 Northamptonshire Steelbacks County Ground, Bristol
References
External links Tournament Site – Cricinfo