Notts Outlaws beat Kent Spitfires by four wickets in the first ever Vitality Blast Crossover match at Canterbury, after an outstanding innings by George Munsey.

Sam Billings hit 64 as Kent posted 184 for 6, before Munsey, who briefly played for Kent in 2021, hit 82 from 47 after being dropped on 6. Matt Milnes took 3 for 30 to keep the Spitfires in it, but Munsey sealed the win with a huge six, with eight balls remaining, Notts finishing on 187 for 6.

This was the first time these sides had met since a quarter-final at Trent Bridge in 2007, when Kent went on to win the competition, but this was a damaging result for the Spitfires, who have now their last three Blast games.

Notts chose to bowl and Mohammad Amir, signed on Thursday as a local player, had Harry Finch lbw to the second ball of the evening. Zak Crawley hit 27 from 21 balls, but was out to the final ball of the powerplay, hitting Mohammad Ali to Freddie McCann at square leg, while Bell-Drummond looked good until he hit Ollie Stone to Jack Haynes at mid-wicket for 37.

Billings survived an umpire review. He hit Liam Patterson-White for six over cover, then hit him right to the boundary but Stone was ruled to have touched the rope before he shovelled the ball to George Linde.

Billings hit the next ball for six, but Kent lost Joe Denly for 18 in the next over, stumped off Patterson-White. Chris Benjamin was bowled by Benny Howell for 4 before Grant Stewart edged Stone and the keeper Tom Moores couldn’t take a difficult, diving chance.

Stewart hit a six off Amir that broke a window before he was caught behind off Amir for 22 off 13, while Billings went in the final over, skying Ali to Moores.

Joe Clarke hit for successive fours off Keith Dudgeon at the start of the fifth, but then hit him to Crawley at midwicket for 24. Milnes then had Haynes caught behind for 1 but Munsey, who was spilled by Stewart off Fred Klaassen at fine leg, reverse swept Lintott for successive sixes.

McCann hit 25 from 16 until he drilled Denly to Milnes at cover, but the 13th over was a killer, Munsey hitting 20 off Lintott.

Kent’s hopes flickered when Milnes got two wickets in three balls. Moores went for 20, caught by Bell-Drummond again at cover, before he bowled George Linde for 1. Fred Klaassen then splayed Benny Howell’s off stump for 2, before Patterson-White almost took Bell-Drummond’s hands off. If that had stuck Kent might have had a chance, but Munsey hit the next ball, a no-ball, for six.

Needing 13 off the last two, Patterson-White pulled Milnes for six into the third floor of the retirement flats, before Munsey, fittingly, clinched it with an astonishing blow over midwicket.