Diwali celebrations for the New South Wales Blues continued on Sunday with Simon Katichs side getting past Somerset to book their place in the semi-finals. In the process,unfortunately,there was no send-off for Justin Langer in his last competitive match,as his team bowed out of the Champions League following their disappointing six-wicket loss at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Uppal. The Somerset top-order have been sub-standard in the competition,and the near-customary collapse began after a decent start as Katich won the toss and elected to field. Craig Kieswetter started with two boundaries but the introduction of Stuart Clark sounded the death knell for Somerset. The tall paceman struck two crucial blows in his very first over,dismissing Kieswetter (13) and Justin Langer (5) within a space of three balls. After 18 seasons of first-class cricket,the 38-year-old Langer trudged off the field for the final time and spent the rest of the innings with a sullen expression. Somerset soon found themselves in deep mire,at 44 for five,but Zander de Bruyn and Wesley Durston provided some respectability to the total towards the end. The English side eventually finished with 111 for the loss of seven wickets. The Blues started off in a hurry as David Warner set the stadium on fire with a 16-ball 40including six fours and two sixes. De Bruyn and Willoughby did delay the eventuality with quick wickets but Daniel Smith,promoted up the order,and captain Katich ensured there were no more hiccups. Fielding a concern Katich,while complimenting his bowlers for a brilliant job,said there were still areas to improve. "The bowling made the difference today. The pacers,including Stuart Clark,as well as the spinners came out with tight bowling. Our bowling was fantastic which helped restrict the opponents," Katich said. "(But) we have to intensify our fielding. Sharp run outs,good catching all these play important role in T20. It is a big challenge because we know that every team that qualified is going to be of great standard. Each game that comes is going to be a big challenge," he added.
