Surrey stroll to opening win

Usman Afzaal goes on the front foot during his exhilarating innings of 98 not out, which helped Surrey defeat Middlesex

An unbroken second-wicket partnership of 139 in only 14 overs between Usman Afzaal and Mark Ramprakash led Surrey to victory over Middlesex in the Twenty20 Cup at Lord’s.

Surrey, the first winners of the tournament in 2003, recorded a comfortable 57-run win over the reigning champions, in front of a crowd of around 10,000.

Middlesex were without six players from the team which beat Kent in last year's final - batsmen Owais Shah, Eoin Morgan and Ed Joyce and bowlers Tim Murtagh, Dirk Nannes and Murali Kartik - and it showed from the moment Surrey won the toss and chose to bat.

Scott Newman and Afzaal had 47 on the board inside six overs when Newman was caught at backward square leg off Chris Silverwood and after that Afzaal and Ramprakash had no trouble maintaining a rate of almost 10 runs an over.

Afzaal finished unbeaten on 98, the highest score by a Surrey batsman in Twenty20 cricket - beating James Benning's 88 against Kent at the Oval in 2006.

He faced only 59 balls and hit two sixes and eight fours, while Ramprakash cruised to 61 off 45 balls with eight fours.

A target of 187 was always going be too demanding for an inexperienced Middlesex batting line-up once former South Africa fast bowler Andre Nel and New Zealand all-rounder Grant Elliott made early inroads into their batting.

Nel bowled Nick Compton, Elliott had Neil Dexter caught at cover and bowled Billy Godleman - and after that only Tyron Henderson put up much of a fight.

He had made 32 off 23 balls with four fours when he was caught behind off Matt Spriegel.

Dawid Malan, who impressed by hitting 103 off 51 balls in the quarter-final against Lancashire last year, did not get very far before holing out at long off against Chris Schofield - who went on to show he could again be a force in this form of the game.

The former England leg-spinner had Shaun Udal brilliantly caught by Newman at midwicket and claimed Dan Housego leg before wicket to finish with 3-21 from four overs.