Surrey thrash Essex

Twenty20 Cup, Esher (South division): Surrey 182-9 beat Essex 138 by 44 runs

Match scorecard

Group tables

Azhar Mahmood kept the crowd thoroughly entertained More Twenty20 Cup pictures

Azhar Mahmood smashed three sixes and three fours in a brilliant exhibition of batting to steer his side to their second win in two days in cricket's newest competition.

The Pakistani blasted his way to 43 off just 18 balls after Surrey had been reduced to 115-6 with five of those wickets all clean bowled.

Graham Thorpe anchored the early part of the innings, hitting a 35-ball 50 which included two sixes of his own.

But on a cracking pitch it needed Mahmood's brilliant footwork and timing to get Surrey up to a high score.

Essex's reply never really got off the ground with Will Jefferson and James Foster falling inside the first three overs.

Tim Murtagh removed dangermen Andy Flower and Ronnie Irani just as both men were threatening to cut loose and the required rate soon shot up to unattainable levels.

The torture finally ended for Essex when Mahmood bowled Paul Grayson and Ryan ten Doeschate in the penultimate over to finish with four wicket to add to all his runs.

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Surrey: I J Ward, A D Brown, M R Ramprakash, G P Thorpe, A J Hollioake (Capt), Azhar Mahmood, J G E Benning, J N Batty (Wkt), T J Murtagh, J Ormond, P J Sampson.

Essex: W I Jefferson, A Flower, R Ten Doeschate, R C Irani (Capt), R S Bopara, J S Foster (Wkt), M L Pettini, A P Grayson, J M Dakin, G R Napier, S A Brant.