Record-breaking Brave reach Hundred final unbeaten

The Utilita Bowl and The Hundred Women’s Competition

Southern grit 106-8 (100 balls): Adams 30* (26), Matthews 2-16

Welsh Fire 77-9 (100 balls): Beaumont 28 (33), Bell 4-6

By 29 runs, Brave won.

With a 29-run victory over Welsh Fire, Southern grit warmed up for Sunday’s final by becoming the first team to win all of their group games in The Hundred.

Brave, who was already guaranteed to finish top and thus advance to Lord’s, applied the squeeze as bottom-of-the-table Fire fell short in search of 107 and made only 106-8 batting first.

After only six singles from her previous 14 balls, Tammy Beaumont made it 50-1 with a 33-ball 28 before the visitors reached 50-1.

Four balls later, when Hayley Matthews was caught at deep mid-wicket in the next set, Jess Jonassen hit Lauren Bell to deep cover, which left only one boundary. For 27 runs, Fire took their final eight wickets to finish with a score of 77-9.

Bell, an England seamer, took two wickets in the final three balls to record a remarkable 4-6 mark, which is the most for a women’s hurried season.

On a slow, turning pitch, Brave’s spinners struggled to hit, with Georgia Adams as captain claiming 1-8 from 15 balls.

In their batting struggle, Adams had earlier scored 30 not out, making her team’s top scorer.

Brave changed their batting order, dropping Sophie Devine to number eight to give other players time in the middle, but they never lost regular wickets.

Only two other batters, Freya Kemp and Danni Wyatt-Hodge, have double-figure numbers in double figures.

The winners of Saturday’s Eliminator will face Northern Superchargers and London Spirit, who are chasing their second women’s Hundred title.