ASHAR Zaidi's brutal hitting carried Essex to their second T20 Blast win of the season and saw them leapfrog Hampshire at the bottom of the South Group.

The Pakistan-born all-rounder came in at number five to post a 32-ball 50 - his highest T20 score for Essex - before finally departing with six runs required when he was caught low down by Tino Best at mid-off after hitting four fours and two sixes.

But Ryan ten Doeschate saw Essex across the line for their first win at Chelmsford this summer with five wickets and seven balls to spare.

And Zaidi said he was pleased to get his chance his up the order.

“We had a chat about it and decided that if the spinners were on, especially the leg spinner, it could be an option for me to go up the order a bit, particularly if it meant we could have a left and right combination. It worked well. It gives variety in T20 games and it can catch the opposition by surprise.

“I’ve been scoring some runs in T20, it was just a case of trying to get to fifty-plus and see the game out, which I nearly did. I’m not a stat man to be fair, but I am very happy with my form at the moment.

“There was massive pressure before the game because we haven’t won many games. We have to win every game now, there is no other option.”

Hampshire, who chose to bat, trundled along to what always looked a below-par 135 on a slow wicket, Graham Napier taking 3-31 and captain Ravi Bopara 2-15.

Essex's response was not without concern and they struggled against the spin of Liam Dawson, who took 3-24 in four tidy overs. But Zaidi and Tom Westley took the game by the scuff of the neck, adding 59 for the fourth wicket in 6.2 overs, and laying the foundation for a successful run chase.

Spinner Dan Lawrence tied down the Hampshire openers but they reached 49 before both departing within the space of two balls, Michael Carberry stumped by James Foster off Westley for a 26-ball 34 and Tom Alsop chipping Lawrence to Ten Doeschate at long-off.

Joe Weatherley and Dawson became bogged down in the middle overs, taking just 21 off five overs.

Weatherley broke a sequence of singles with a four but Napier had his revenge next ball, a slower one that the batsman played all around before turning to see his stumps rearranged.

Bopara grabbed two wickets in five balls in his second over. Dawson came down the wicket and missed the ball completely before Shahid Afridi attempted a reverse sweep and was also bowled to leave Essex 98-5.

Darren Sammy tried to deposit Napier over long-off and was bowled, and in the same over Lewis McManus wafted over the ball and was the fifth batsman to have his stumps splayed.

Gareth Andrew pulled Matthew Quinn over Ten Doeschate on the midwicket boundary for six but two balls later Sean Ervine was eighth out, caught at long-on by Westley.

Essex's hopes of chasing 136 were dealt a blow when Jesse Ryder swished at Sammy's second ball and was caught behind for 18.

The hosts were behind Hampshire after the power-play overs, having reached 43-1, and they then lost two wickets in quick succession to Dawson. Kishen Velani lobbed the bowler up to Alsop at long-on before Bopara was trapped lbw.

Westley upped the tempo with a four through mid-off off Dawson, followed by two in quick succession off Afridi, the second a flick of the wrists sending the ball to the third-man boundary.

Zaidi was keeping pace with Westley and guided a well-placed boundary off Best just behind square as they reached the fifty partnership inside five overs. The Essex 100 came up in the 13th over with a swept six by Zaidi off Afridi over midwicket.

The fourth-wicket pair were separated when Westley went lbw to Dawson for 27 but Zaidi continued the good work to take Essex to within sight of victory.