Tom Curran’s hat-trick set alight Surrey’s Vitallity Blast – but they face a battle to keep alive their last realistic bid for honours this season.

Having lost the first two games of their South Group campaign, they got off the mark in last week’s tropical temperatures, finally ending Glamorgan’s unbeaten run at the Kia Oval – six wins in seven games plus an abandonment – before a thrilling tie against Sussex at Hove.

But another setback, at the hands of Kent in a seven-over game on Tuesday, mean there is little margin for error in the 14-match qualifying state if Surrey are to make up for a disappointing season.

They were bowled out for 141 from the last ball of the innings against Glamorgan, Will Jacks’s 40 the best in an innings which slid from 73-1 to 99-6.

Yet it all looked very different soon after. Curran’s first over – the second of the innings – saw him burst through David Lloyd’s defences with the second ball, extracting an edge from Colin Ingram with the next delivery for Rikki Clarke to snap up the catch at slip and Billy Root suffering identical fate for the hat-trick.

Curran, part of England’s World Cup-winning squad but left on the sidelines throughout the seven-week campaign, not surprisingly roared his delight as he exulted in front of a roaring capacity crowd. When skipper Jade Dernbach had Owen Morgan caught behind moments later, Glamorgan were 9-4 and tumbling to a record low Blast score of 44 all out, spinners Imran Tahir and Gareth Batty claiming three wickets apiece to finish the job in 12.5 overs.

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A tie against Sussex at Hove 24 hours later, when tailenders Tahir and Batty extracted 11 from the final over, may yet prove crucial in Surrey’s campaign. Curran’s 2-32 from four overs in that match underlined his expertise with a white ball, which earned a World Cup squad spot but then grew rusty with inaction to the extent that his three overs in Surrey’s T20 opener against Essex were smashed for 63.

He admitted: “I would definitely have liked to have played in the World Cup, of course, but England winning the tournament was so much bigger than me playing a game or two.

“Being part of the squad was obviously a massive experience but it’s also nice to be back on the park and playing.”

Having a fit and firing Curran back could not have come at a better time for Surrey, whose season-long injury crisis continued when Liam Plunkett incurred a hand injury in the Glamorgan match and then Dernbach pulled up mid-over at Hove through of a back spasm.

Luke Wright’s 76 was key to Sussex reaching 144-8 at Hove, Batty claiming 3-20, Jacks (35) and Ollie Pope (43) giving the visitors hope of a second victory in 24 hours. An attack including England spearhead Jofra Archer appeared to have the match won at 133-8 but Tahir hit an unlikely six over point in the last over to ensure the points were shared.

Maintaining that upswing in form was always going to be difficult against Kent, who arrived at The Oval on Tuesday having won all three matches, heavy rain testing Surrey’s outstanding groundstaff to the full but a seven-over thrash finally going ahead.

Acting captain Aaron Finch (36no) dominated the home side’s lacklustre 54-4, New Zealand speedster Adam Milne’s two overs costing just eight runs, and it proved nowhere near enough when Afghanistani all-rounder Mohammad Nabi thrashed 43no off just 12 balls – including five sixes – to earn Kent victory by nine wickets with a remarkable three overs to spare.

Surrey head to Taunton on Friday night for a clash with Somerset and then enjoy six days off before their derby with Middlesex at Lord’s, entertaining Gloucestershire the following evening.