Capsey finds best form as Invincibles crush Phoenix

The Hundred women’s competition, Edgbaston

Oval Invincibles 174-5 (100 balls): Capsey 52 (29); Baker 2-24

Birmingham Phoenix 152-6 (100 balls): Lister 33* (18); Wellington 2-27

Oval Invincibles won by 22 runs

Alice Capsey found her best form as Oval Invincibles beat Birmingham Phoenix by 22 runs to earn their first victory of this year’s women’s Hundred.

The 21-year-old all-rounder, four years on from making her professional debut aged 16 in this competition, struck 52 from only 29 balls as the Invincibles piled up 174-5 – their highest total in the women’s Hundred and the third highest by any team.

Capsey has struggled for form in the past year but built on the platform laid by Lauren Winfield-Hill and Meg Lanning, who took 54 from the powerplay – also a women’s Hundred record.

After Lanning fell for 36 and Winfield-Hill for 33, the right-handed Capsey, with only one fifty in her past 32 T20 or Hundred innings, hit eight fours and one pulled six.

Strong on the drive and with her inventive reverse sweeps, she put on 57 in just 29 balls with Paige Scholfield, who made 25 not out from 16.

Requiring the highest successful chase in the women’s Hundred, Phoenix never really threatened in pursuit despite 22 from Georgia Voll, 25 from Emma Lamb, 29 from captain Ellyse Perry and Scotland international Ailsa Lister’s impressive 31 not out.

Perry hit Australia team-mate Amanda-Jade Wellington for six but was caught behind off the leg-spinner a ball later. Wellington also ran out England international Lamb at the non-striker’s end with a clever flick on to the stumps as Phoenix ended on 152-6.

Capsey is a product of The Hundred, having made her name by scoring fifty in her second game at Lord’s in 2021.

Back on this stage, she looked more confident and destructive than she has throughout her recent struggles.

Capsey scored 79 and 57 for Surrey in the domestic 50-over competition last month but has five single-figure scores in her six T20 innings for England this year. She was left out of England’s one-day international series defeat by India entirely.

But, back to close to her best, the highlight of this innings was a reverse sweep lifted over backward point.

Two balls earlier she offered a chance with the same shot on 21 but the power took the ball through the hands of Sterre Kalis.

“For me it is such a go-to shot and something I lost a bit of confidence in for a while,” Capsey told BBC Two. “To have that confidence to stick at it, it was nice a few came off today.

There are four games on Wednesday – two men’s and two women’s.

Southern Brave host Northern Superchargers with the women’s match starting at 11:30 BST and the men’s 15:00.

Welsh Fire also host Manchester Originals in the women’s competition from 15:00 with the men following from 18:30.