During Somerset’s match against Essex in Leicester on Monday, June 19, all-rounder Roelof van der Merwe dislocated his finger before having it fixed.
The incident happened in the 16th over of Essex’s innings, which was a Merwe over. Matt Critchley attempted a straight drive after the Dutch bowler, who is of South African descent, delivered a lower full toss.
When the left-arm bowler attempted to stop the ball, his finger began to lose its shape, which led to injury. Thank goodness it was on the finger of his non-bowling arm.
The 38-year-old rushed to the physiotherapist right away, who in less than a minute stretched and replaced his finger. Then, everyone was taken aback when Merwe made a surprise appearance to finish the final three balls of the over.
The Vitality Blast website shared the video with the following caption on social media:
“Roelof van der Merwe is an absolute trooper: dislocates his finger brilliantly stopping a ball, gets it put back in place, and sprints back to bowl!” (Watching is not recommended for the faint of heart). ”
Somserset, led by Roelof van der Merwe, defeated Essex by a margin of seven wickets.
On Monday, a masterful batting display helped Somerset defeat Essex by seven wickets.
Tom Banton and Will Smeed gave the team a perfect start as they put on 64 for the opening stand while chasing 187 with 42 runs off 30 balls and 36 runs off 16 deliveries, respectively.
Tom Kohler-Cadmore contributed with 28 off 11. The team crossed the finish line with three points and three overs to spare thanks to Tom Abell (40 off 26) and Sean Dickson (30 off 17). Daniel Sams and Simon Harmer each took two wickets for Essex.
Earlier, Essex got off to the worst possible start when they were quickly reduced to 3/15. A 94-run partnership for the fourth wicket was then shared by Robin Das (72 off 39) and Paul Walter (51 off 27).
Additionally, Matt Critchley made 30 from 22 balls. With figures of 3/24, Matt Henry was Somerset’s best bowler, while Jack Brooks and Ben Green each claimed two victims. Also claiming one wicket was Roelof van der Merwe.
With the victory, Somerset now leads the South Group with 14 points in the most recent Vitality Blast T20 points standings.
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