Tosses of misfortune. Game 13 of the Hundred between London Spirit and Trent Rockets at Lord’s saw the decision of a coin toss as the defining factor to give Trent Rockets a win in the women’s game and the London Spirit in the men’s.
Women’s match
Fielding was the call by London Spirit skipper, Charlie Dean. Bryony Smith made Dean immediately regret that decision with Natasha Wraith, giving the Rockets a 52 run jumpstart in the powerplay. Soon after however, Eva Grey showed her worth for the Spirit, dismissing both openers in the same over. It wasn’t enough to deter the rockets, as England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt kept them flying alongside her captain today, Ashleigh Gardner.
Approaching the death, Sarah Glenn got Gardener out on the attack, and Gray continued to shine taking out both Heather Graham and Emma Jones in back to back deliveries, ending on 4-19. Sciver-Brunt squeezed out a couple more runs in the final ten, completing her half-century and bringing the Trent Rockets up to 149-6.
150 seemed daunting on paper, but London Spirit had a proven batting lineup to get them over the line. Unfortunately for them, the quality was not up to the mark today. Kira Chathli and Georgia Redmayne were dragging themselves through the powerplay, credit to tight outside off bowling and baits from Trent Rockets.
Chathli was the first to fall and Redmayne soon after, with little to no impact. Cordelia Griffith gave the Spirit a glimpse of hope, but wouldn’t last long, departing on 20, as dominoes began to come down on the defending champions.
Nearly the entire Rockets bowling lineup played a hand for the next 20-odd deliveries, deflating the home crowd, as London Spirit lost 4 wickets for 17 runs. From 73-6, the two Charli’s, Knott and Dean, prevented a complete collapse but weren’t out of the woods as the run rate kept begging.
Dean couldn’t fend off Kirstie Gordon long enough, becoming wicket no.7, and Glenn joined her in the dugout as no.8. Knott kept on the attack, scoring 33, but as expected her efforts were to no avail, as she was Gordon’s fourth and final victim at 116 all out, Gordon taking 4-15. London Spirit’s undefeated run this season came to an end, as the Trent Rockets walked away with a 33 run win.
Men’s match
On the men’s side of things, David Willey and Trent Rockets took the same call as Dean earlier in the day and decided to field first. Jamie Smith took just three deliveries to make Willey rethink that decision, dispatching the left hander for a clean maximum. The in-form keeper batsman paired up brilliantly with his captain, Kane Williamson, a perfect mix of young aggression and experienced resilience.
The two were running away with the game, scoring 73 runs together. Smith brought up his first half-century of the Hundred season, after surviving a couple of scares, but was finally caught at mid-on by Joe Root on 52. Williamson failed to get to his fifty, falling at 45 to Tom Alsop’s quick hand.
The wickets brought London Spirit in a slight rut, but Ashton Turner gave an extra boost with a quickfire 30. He was dismissed right towards the end by Marcus Stoinis, as London Spirit ended on 162-5, with Jamie Overton losing his wicket on the final ball for Stoinis’ second.
Root and Tom Banton took most of the powerplay to get the Rockets’ innings going, but once they found their footing the chase was on. Banton once again seemed to lead and control the innings, but once again he fell before he could go too far, playing the ball onto his own stumps off Overton’s delivery on 46. The opening stand may have given Trent Rockets a good start, but put pressure on their batting lineup, having taken over half of the innings with 90 runs needed.
Veteran Dan Worrall sent back skipper WIlley and Rehan Ahmed in quick succession, trouble was on the cards for the visitors. More misery came their way as Alsop had a nasty strike on his nose from Overton’s bowling, going back injured.
Middlesex local Max Holden fell next to Richard Gleeson, the pressure mounting on white ball pro Stoinis to see the game through. The target was too great and sporadic sixes from Stoinis saw the Trent Rockets get close but not over, as London Spirit won by 21 runs, their first home win this season.
