All 18 first-class counties will host at least one women’s and men’s Vitality Blast double-header next season as part of the historic 2025 domestic T20 summer.
The 2025 season will mark the first time all women’s and men’s county teams have played side-by-side in the Vitality Blast, with the men’s competition entering its 22nd year and the women’s teams playing in both Vitality Blast competitions.
Eight counties in the first tier will compete in the Vitality Blast Women’s competition, while Vitality Blast Women’s League 2 will feature the remaining 10 counties, with 52 women’s and men’s double-headers across 20 venues next season.
The Blast-Off weekend, from May 29 to June 1, will kick off the new-look competition, featuring 10 doubleheaders and all eight rounds of the Vitality Blast women’s competition.Competitor week will also continue in the men’s competition, with the oldest round rivalries taking center stage.
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Check out the funniest moments from the Vitality Blast Finals day
The group stage will then conclude with the “Friday Final” on July 18, with eight men’s and eight women’s matches, where the women will compete for the three Finals spots and the men will have the last chance to book their place in the quarter-finals.
The first day of the Vitality Blast Women’s Final will take place at the Kia Oval on Sunday 27th July.while the Vitality Blast men’s final day takes place at Edgbaston on Saturday 13 September.
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The best of Edgbaston as Somerset beat Essex by 14 runs to win the 2023 Vitality Blast final.
There will be 17 Vitality Blast men’s matches on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, up from five last summer, while the number of back-to-back matches has also been cut by almost a third.
What is the format and how do teams reach the finals?
Each men’s county side plays 14 group stage matches against the counties in their respective groups, with the top four teams from each group advancing to the quarter-finals and those winners then qualifying for the final day.
Northern group. Bears, Derbyshire Falcons, Durham, Lancashire Lightning, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Notts Outlaws, Worcestershire Rapids, Yorkshire Vikings.
Southern groupEssex, Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Hampshire Hawks, Kent Spitfires, Middlesex, Somerset, Sussex Sharks, Surrey.
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Check out the best catches from the last day of the 2023 T20 Vitality Blast
And what about the women’s competitions?
In the Vitality Blast Women’s competition, eight sides play 14 group stage matches, playing each team home and away, with the top three in the round-robin group securing a place on Final Day.
Group:Bears, Durham, Essex, Hampshire Hawks, Lancashire Thunder, Somerset, Surrey, The Blaze.
The remaining ten teams competing in Vitality Blast Women’s League 2 have been divided into two groups of five, each playing eight group stage matches with the top two qualifying for the finals day.
Northern groupDerbyshire Falcons, Leicestershire Foxes, Northamptonshire Steelbacks, Worcestershire Rapids, Yorkshire.
Southern group. Glamorgan, Gloucestershire, Kent, Middlesex, Sussex Sharks.
Kickoff Games – Blast-Off Weekend, May 29-June 1
Thursday, May 29
Men – Lancashire Lightning vs Worcestershire Rapids (Emirates Old Trafford)
Men – Middlesex v Sussex Sharks (Lord’s)
Women’s League 2 – Middlesex vs Sussex Sharks (Lord’s)
Friday, May 30
Men – Gloucestershire v Kent Spitfires (The Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol)
Women – Hampshire Hawks vs Essex (Utilita Bowl)
Men – Hampshire Hawks vs Essex (Utilita Bowl)
Men – Leicestershire Foxes v Derbyshire Falcons (Uptonstill County)
Men – Notts Outlaws vs Bears (Trent Bridge)
Women – The Blaze vs Bears (Trent Bridge)
Men – Somerset v Surrey (The Cooper Associates County Ground)
Women – Somerset v Surrey (The Cooper Associates County Ground)
Men – Yorkshire vs Northamptonshire Steelbacks (Headingley)
Saturday May 31
Men – Bears v Durham Cricket (Edgbaston)
Women – Bears v Durham Cricket (Edgbaston)
Men – Lancashire Lightning vs Notts Outlaws (Emirates Old Trafford)
Women – Lancashire Thunder vs The Blaze (Emirates Old Trafford)
Sunday June 1
Men – Durham Cricket vs Lancashire Lightning (Seat Unique Riverside)
Women – Durham Cricket vs Lancashire Thunder (Seat Unique Riverside)
Men – Worcestershire Rapids vs Yorkshire (Visit Worcestershire New Road)
Men – Essex v Somerset (The Cloud County Ground)
Women – Essex v Somerset (The Cloud County Ground)
Men – Middlesex v Glamorgan (Merchant Taylors’ School)
Ladies League 2 – Middlesex v Glamorgan (Merchant Taylors’ School)
Men – Northamptonshire Steelbacks vs Leicestershire Foxes (The County Ground Northampton)
Women’s League 2 – Northamptonshire Steelbacks vs Leicestershire (County Ground Northampton)
Men – Sussex Sharks v Gloucestershire (1st Central County Ground, Hove)
Women’s League 2 – Sussex Sharks v Gloucestershire (Central County Ground 1, Hove)
Women’s League 2 – Yorkshire vs Derbyshire Falcons (Headingley)
Watch Vitality Blast live on Sky Sports. Sky Sports+ has officially launched and will be integrated with it Sky TVstreaming service NOW! and: The Sky Sports appthis year giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport at no extra cost. Learn more here.
