| Men’s Hundred, Cardiff |
| Welsh Fire 139-8 (100 balls): Phillips 50 (35); Wahab 4-30 |
| Trent Rockets 140-4 (90 balls): Patel 46 (20) |
| Trent Rockets win by six wickets |
| Scorecard. Table. |
Trent Rockets underlined their status as the team to beat in the men’s Hundred by thrashing Welsh Fire by six wickets to go back to the top of the table.
The Rockets fought back brilliantly with the ball to restrict the Fire to 139-8.
Pakistan bowler Wahab Riaz took a spectacular 4-30, including a scorching full delivery to bowl Jimmy Neesham, as they conceded just 14 runs from the last 14 balls while taking five wickets.
Rockets’ much vaunted top-order failed in their chase but Samit Patel took them to victory in emphatic style with 46 not out from 20 balls.
The former England all-rounder smashed a six to complete the win with 10 balls to spare.
It is a fourth win from five games for the Rockets who are two points clear at the top of the table after five games, with three more to come.
Rockets the team to beat
We’re into the back end of the group stage of The Hundred and Trent Rockets clearly look the team to beat – returning to form after a thumping by Birmingham Phoenix last time out.
Their top three of Alex Hales, D’Arcy Short and Dawid Malan, all international players, failed on this occasion but they still had bags of experience to first steady the ship, then blaze them to victory.
Patel, who played 60 times for England between 2008 and 2015, expertly turned a tricky equation of 58 runs required from 35 balls into his side’s favour by hitting a four and two sixes in the space of four balls.
Captain Lewis Gregory – another England international in the Rockets side – was a further calming presence at the finish. He ended 22 not out from 17 balls.
Their bowling was solid too. Superstar Rashid Khan was uncharacteristically ineffective but others – chiefly Wahab, but also Luke Wood, Steven Mullaney and Matt Carter – stood up.
In comparison, Fire buckled at the finish – David Payne bowling Gregory with 25 runs needed only for him to have overstepped meaning a was no-ball given.
Fire are seventh on four points. They are losing touch on a place in the latter stages with the team who tops the group qualifying automatically for the final and second and third meeting in the eliminator.
Wahab lights up The Hundred… finally!
Wahab’s thrilling delivery to dismiss New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham was probably the best of the tournament so far.
The 36-year-old Pakistan star speared the ball towards Neesham’s toes and it clattered into the base of the stumps.
As he walked off knowing he’d been bested, New Zealand all-rounder Neesham gave Wahab a nod as if to say “well bowled”.
Wahab, a left-armer who glides to the crease and delivers 90mph rockets, bowled 10 consecutive deliveries at the end of the Fire innings and picked up another two wickets, including another yorker to Luke Fletcher which spectacularly knocked middle stump out of the ground.
It was a fine start to The Hundred for Wahab after a difficult few weeks.
He originally arrived in the UK two weeks before the start of the tournament but had to return to Pakistan because of visa issues.
After arriving for a second time he had to quarantine and watch his temporary replacement Marchant de Lange star in Rockets’ opening four games.
On Friday, he finally arrived for real.
Article courtesy of BBC Sport
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