Joe McConnell
Trent Rockets maintained their hopes of reaching the knockout stages of The Hundred with a 24-point win over Southern Brave in Southampton, as captain Nat Sciver-Brunt became the highest points scorer in the history of the women’s competition.
Sciver-Brunt’s 60 not outs from 37 balls, during which she surpassed the Brave and England teammate Danni Wyatt’s opening haul of 903 points in all editions of The Hundred, lifted the Rockets to 155-7.
Wyatt (0) failed to add to her score after falling victim to a golden duck in the Brave’s return, with the already eliminated defending champions restricted to 131-6 (with Chloe Tryon leading the way with an unbeaten 47 from 31 balls) and hurtling towards a fifth defeat in seven matches.
The fifth-place Rockets will now have to beat Birmingham Phoenix on Monday and the Oval Invincibles on Wednesday, and hope the other results are in their favor, to finish in the top three.
The top-ranked teams will go straight to the final at Lord’s on August 18, where they will face the winner of a knockout between the second and third-placed teams at the Kia Oval the day before.
The Rockets have accumulated six more points after as many games and are one point off the top three, while the Braves are stuck at the bottom of the standings with three points, after picking up just one win over the Invincibles.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Sciver-Brunt deflected a Lauren Bell delivery onto her stumps but the bails remained
Sciver-Brunt had a stroke of luck on 38 when she deflected Lauren Bell’s slower ball onto her stumps, but the balls remained, during a Rockets innings in which opener Grace Scrivens scored a brisk 36 from 24 balls.
Stalwart bowler Bell picked up three wickets and conceded two boundaries in an entertaining five-ball finale, while Wyatt and Maia Bouchier (0) were run out by left-handed bowler Alexa Stonehouse inside the first five balls of the reply.
Smriti Mandhana (42 off 27) – who had dismissed Rockets’ Bryony Smith from the first ball of the match – and Brave captain Georgia Adams (27 off 29) rallied the hosts from 1-2 down with a score of 60 off 46 balls.
The partnership broke down when Adams was run out with 95 runs required from 50 deliveries and Brave’s knock subsequently petered out, with Tryon’s boundaries at the back coming too late.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Smriti Mandhana’s straight hit from mid-off removed Bryony Smith for a duck off the first ball of the Trent Rockets’ innings
Player of the Match – Nat Sciver-Brunt
“I’m really happy with today. Their hitters put us under pressure and made us go through some plans. After a few games, we were feeling pretty down. But we came back pretty strong in the last two games.”
What will happen now?
Sunday is another four-match day in The Hundred, starting with the London derby between Oval Invincibles and London Spirit at the Kia Oval, where the women’s teams will clash from 11am, before the men take on each other from 2.30pm.
There is also action at Emirates Old Trafford as Manchester Originals met Northern Superchargerswith the women’s race starting at 2.30pm and the men’s at 6pm.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Here’s how to use Vscek+, which gives Vscek customers access to over 50 percent more live sport this year at no extra cost
Oval Invincibles Women v London Spirit Women (broadcast 10.30am, kick-off 11am)
– Free streaming on Vscek digital platforms; also on Vscek Cricket
Oval Invincibles Men vs London Spirit Men (broadcast 2pm, kick-off 2.30pm)
– Live on Vscek Cricket
Manchester Originals Women v Northern Superchargers Women (broadcast 2pm, kick-off 2.30pm)
– Free streaming on Vscek digital platforms; also on Vscek Mix
Manchester Originals Men v Northern Superchargers Men (broadcast 5.30pm, kick-off 6pm)
– Live on Vscek Cricket and Vscek Main Event
Vscek+ has officially launched and will be integrated into Sky TV, the NOW streaming service and the Vscek app, giving Vscek customers access to over 50 percent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.
