Joe McConnell
Southern Brave made it three wins out of four in The Hundred this year, defeating Welsh Fire at Sophia Gardens.
James Vince’s 73-run winner from 50 balls in the first innings helped the Fire to a 140-run win, and the home team never threatened to reach that target, leaving the Brave top of the men’s competition at the end of the night.
Welsh Fire had won the toss and elected to bowl first, but the Brave batsmen worked well in partnership with Alex Davies, Leus du Plooy and Kieron Pollard all supporting the superb Vince, who was in dazzling form with 73 not out, including seven fours and three sixes.
A cameo from Chris Jordan in the last 10 balls saw a six from 98 metres, before he fell on the last ball, going past David Payne and being well caught by Willey.
Haris Rauf (2-22) and Matt Henry (1-20) were the standout hurlers for the Welsh Fire, with the home side hoping the floodlit conditions could make for a strong chase.
In response, Luke Wells and Jonny Bairstow struggled to get opening bowlers Akeal Hossein and Craig Overton going, with just 29 runs scored in the first 30 balls and with the bowlers making life difficult with significant swing.
Both opening batsmen then fell in quick succession as the Brave took control, with Tymal Mills (4-16), Danny Briggs (3-14) and Chris Jordan (2-19) tearing through the Welsh Fire batting order to seal a very comfortable victory.
Player of the match: James Vince
Chris Jordan celebrates with teammate Vince after taking a wicket at Sophia Gardens
“It was nice to get the win. I think, batting first, we found it quite tricky. But at the halfway point you never know for sure until both teams have batted,” Vince said.
“The way we played, especially in attack, was fantastic and showed that the situation was quite tough.
“Our bowlers have meshed really well – Akeal and Craig with the new ball and then CJ and Tymal in the back end, they’ve done it so many times and we’re in a good rhythm at the moment. The bowlers have been fantastic and I think the batsmen have done a good job on that pitch as well.”
What’s next?
The Hundred continues with four games on Tuesday. Manchester Originals AND The Invincible Ovals Women start their day at 11:30pm, followed by men at 3pm.
Birmingham Phoenix AND Supercharger of the North The women will play at 3pm, followed by the men at 6.30pm; all four matches will be shown live on Vscek Cricket.
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