Glamorgan's Carlson savours 'really special' knock

Kiran Carlson hit 13 fours and six sixes in his whirlwind innings against Somerset [Huw Evans Picture Agency]Glamorgan captain Kiran Carlson says "it doesn't get much better" after his spectacular century spearheaded an emphatic win over defending T20 Blast champions Somerset.

>It was Carlson's second hundred in the format - two seasons after his county record score of 135 against the same opponents, also at Sophia Gardens.

>"It felt like deja vu - it was really cool against one of our closest rivals, Friday night, big crowd. It was really special," Carlson told BBC Sport Wales after the seven-wicket victory.

>His innings of 109 off 45 balls helped Glamorgan pass their target of 172 with a remarkable 37 balls to spare, earning a much-needed win after two last-ball defeats on the opening weekend of the competition.

>Carlson's high-octane approach saw him enjoy some good fortune early on in a stand of 146 with Will Smale (40) before taking the Somerset bowling apart.

>"I nicked my first 30 runs over third man, but from there managed to find the middle a bit, rode my luck and it was good fun," said Carlson.

>"It's really good fun batting together with Smaley [Will Smale] once we get going - we were having a good time."

>He is only the second player to score more than one T20 century for Glamorgan, with the currently injured Colin Ingram having three to his name.

>It was the second-fastest hundred for a Glamorgan player, beaten only by Chris Cooke's 38-ball effort.

>Aussie debutant Nathan McAndrew was the key man with the ball, taking four for 15 to peg Somerset back after they had raced to 100 off 10 overs.

>"It's always nice to have a good performance early in the tournament coming into a new team, it just lets you take a breath and settle, but it's just about trying to play my role for the team," said McAndrew.

>Glamorgan now face a demanding spell of three away games in four days, starting with the return at Somerset on Thursday, 4 June before visits to Worcestershire the following day and Lancashire at Blackpool on Sunday, 7 June.

>"To be able to put in a performance like that after losing off the last ball twice, shows where we're at as a squad, so I'm really proud of the lads.

>"It's a long competition, loads of games [nine] to go, and hopefully we'll be in the mix come the back end," Carlson said.

>"It's going to be a very tough game down at Somerset because they're a quality team, they don't lose many games down there and they'll be really keen to beat us.

>"Tough games coming up, but that's the nature of the competition."

>Experienced New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham could be a key player in the coming weeks after making a low-key debut less than 24 hours after stepping off the plane from Auckland.

>His signing followed the withdrawal of Afghanistan pace bowler Faz Farooqi when his national board demanded he return to Kabul for fitness tests, even though he took six wickets in the first two games for Glamorgan.

>"It hasn't been an easy week with a lot of moving parts, changes left right and centre, but the boys still managed to put in a really good performance with loads going on behind the scenes," said Carlson.