| Women’s Hundred, Edgbaston |
| Trent Rockets 145-5 (100 balls): Graham 44* (21), Johnson 29 (21) |
| Birmingham Phoenix 134-9 (100 balls): Wong 27 (11); Johnson 3-27 |
| Trent Rockets won by 11 runs |
| Scorecard; Table |
A fired-up Katherine Brunt once again won her ongoing battle with India’s teenage superstar Shafali Verma as Trent Rockets edged past Birmingham Phoenix in the women’s Hundred at Edgbaston.
Trent Rockets made 145-5, mainly thanks to some late hitting which added 27 off the final 10 balls, with Heather Graham making an unbeaten 21-ball 44.
In reply Phoenix, who have now only won one of their first four games, lost regular wickets and stuttered to 92-7.
Issy Wong gave them hope by clubbing 27 off just 11 balls, before Brunt induced a top edge on a pull, and completed the catch herself, resulting in a mini lap of honour in celebration.
Rockets held on to win by 11 runs, and their second win leaves them fourth in the eight-team table, while Phoenix are fifth.
The men’s game between the same two teams takes place at Edgbaston at 14:30 BST, and is live on BBC Two.
Brunt v Verma entertains again
It has been one of THE battles of the summer.
Verma started well – scoring 159 runs in the Test match between England and India – but since then Brunt has found a way.
The 17-year-old has failed to get past 48 since, with Brunt, who is 19 years her senior, dismissing her four times in seven innings.
There have been boundaries from Verma – five in a row in one game. There have been stares and fiery celebrations from Brunt. But Brunt appears to be having the last laugh.
Here, Verma had no-look pulled England’s premier fast bowler for four, and bunted her back over her head, before a slower-ball yorker deceived the combative right-hander and she was bowled for just 14.
Cue more fist pumps and a raucous “come on” from Brunt.
As the battle has unfolded this summer, Brunt has banged the ball in shorter, aiming for the body of Verma, and the Indian has continually backed away towards the leg side, and today left her stumps fully exposed to be bowled.
The good news? Trent Rockets and Birmingham Phoenix are local rivals so they will come head-to-head again in the group stage on Friday, 13 August at 15:30 BST.
Stick it in the dairy.
The one Wong ball which cost Phoenix 10 runs
At just 19, Wong is considered a future England bowler because of her express pace, and wants to hit the 80mph mark.
She has already been in and around Heather Knight’s squad, but is yet to make her debut.
She had Sarah Glenn trapped lbw at the start of her final set of five, before it all started to unravel.
Wong bowled a slower ball above waist height – which is a no-ball, so saw Rockets gain two runs, plus there was a single taken – before it happened again the next ball.
That meant that she had to be taken off – with two balls of her final set of five remaining – and replaced by a different bowler. Emily Arlott’s first ball went for four, meaning that one ball cost Phoenix 10 runs.
The first one was potentially harsh, with the batter advancing down the track, and replays suggesting it may have dipped by the time it reached the crease.
Wong showed great courage to speak in the interval, saying she was “disappointed”, but that she would continue to back her slower ball “because it is something that I’ve really worked on”.
Article courtesy of BBC Sport
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