Watch every match from The Hundred live on Sky Sports; every women’s game and selected men’s fixtures to be streamed for free; two-time runners-up Southern Brave begin campaign with victory over Trent Rockets as Smriti Mandhana hits 55; Nat Sciver-Brunt’s 49 in vain
Smriti Mandhana top-scored with 55 and teenage debutant Mary Taylor claimed three wickets as Southern Brave beat Trent Rockets by 27 runs in the first women’s match of the 2023 Hundred.
India star Mandhana struck six fours and two sixes to lift Brave to 157-6 from their 100 deliveries before Rockets limped to 130-7 as seam bowler Taylor, 18, recorded figures of 3-18 from 20 balls.
Nat Sciver-Brunt (49 off 31) kept Rockets in the hunt, hitting five boundaries in six balls including three fours and a six off Maitlan Brown, but then chipped back to Anya Shrubsole with 55 runs needed from 21 balls.
- Scorecard: Trent Rockets vs Southern Brave, The HundredThe Hundred – latest standings | Live cricket on Sky Sports
Southern Brave beat Trent Rockets by 27 runs
Содержание статьи:
Southern Brave – 157-6 from 100 balls – Smriti Mandhana (55 off 36), Maia Bouchier (31 off 18), Danni Wyatt (27 off 27), Chloe Tryon (23no off 10); Bryony Smith (2-34 off 20 balls), Kirstie Gordon (1-17 off 20 balls)
Trent Rockets – 131-7 from 100 balls – Nat Sciver-Brunt (49 off 31 balls); Harmanpreet Kaur (22 off 17); Mary Taylor (3-18 off 20 balls); Georgia Adams (2-25 off 20 balls)
Brave were beaten finalists in the first two editions of the tournament, losing to Oval Invincibles in 2021 and 2022.
They will hope to go one better in 2023 in what is captain Shrubsole’s final competition before she retires from cricket.
Brave were 128-1 after 77 balls but lost five wickets for 31 runs once Maia Bouchier (31 off 18) was caught off Australia leg-spinner Alana King, with Mandhana then falling to Bryony Smith.
Smith had earlier removed England’s Danni Wyatt for a run-a-ball 27 – Wyatt and Mandhana sharing a stand of 65 from 43 deliveries as Rockets started waywardly with the ball, bowling a host of wides.
Rockets’ pursuit of what would have been the second highest successful chase in women’s Hundred matches got off to a dreadful start with Smith (0) run out first ball after a comical mix-up with Lizelle Lee.
The Midlanders were 21-3 after 27 balls as Taylor, who bowled 11 dot balls, had Lee (11) and Naomi Dattani (8) caught in the deep, bringing Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet Kaur (22) together.
Sciver-Brunt and Harmanpreet added 45 before the latter was caught off Georgia Adams (2-25), the India batter pouched on the slog-sweep one ball after using that shot to crunch a six.
Sciver-Brunt proceeded to pepper the boundary before her dismissal pretty much ended Rockets’ hopes.
How the two teams lined-up
What’s next?
The Hundred continues on Wednesday with FOUR games.
Welsh Fire women take on Manchester Originals women from 11.30am in Cardiff before the men’s sides meet from 3pm. Over at Lord’s, it is London Spirit women vs Oval Invincibles women from 3pm with the men’s London derby then under way from 6.30pm.
Sky Sports will show all 68 games in The Hundred live this summer. Stream The Hundred and more with NOW
