After a week without a Vitality Blast fixture, Warwickshire Bears Women return to action as they take on The Blaze for the second time this season.
It’s part of a huge double-header at Trent Bridge for both Bears’ sides. Here are the details…
Team news
The Bears name a 13-player squad for the trip to Trent Bridge, with Sophie Beech coming in for Phoebe Brett and Bethan Ellis.
Bears team: Georgia Davis, Meg Austin, Hannah Baker, Sophie Beech, Chloe Brewer, Abbey Freeborn, Charis Pavely, Georgia Redmayne, Alexa Stonehouse, Amu Surenkumar, Mary Taylor, Millie Taylor, Nat Wraith
Form guide
Warwickshire will be looking to pick up their first victory of the season on Friday, against a Blaze side that slipped to their first defeat of the season last time out.
It’s been a tricky start for the Bears, having been on the wrong side of results in all four outings so far, and they will hope to bounce back on Friday.
The Blaze started the season in fine form, picking up three consecutive wins to kick-start their campaign. In all three games, they successfully chased totals of 180, 163 and 159. Their sole loss to date came last Sunday, as they lost by seven wickets to Durham after setting them 153 for victory.
Previous meetings
You only have to go back nine days for the last meeting between these two sides, with The Blaze winning by four wickets in a back-and-forth contest at Edgbaston.
Batting first, the Bears reached 95 inside 11 overs before losing their first wicket, however The Blaze fought back well, taking wickets regularly from that point on to restrict the hosts to 158 for eight from their 20 overs. Similarly, The Blaze were 94 for one in their reply, before the Bears fought back, with The Blaze eventually getting over the line with four balls left of their innings.
In last year’s competition, the Bears had the better of the meetings. Their first ended in an entertaining draw at Trent Bridge before the Bears won by 25 runs in the reverse fixture. The teams met again at the semi-final stage, with Issy Wong starring with both bat and ball as the Bears won by 20 runs.
Players to watch
Meg Austin – The last time these two teams met, Austin produced fireworks at the top of the order in a 95-run opening stand with Abbey Freeborn. Austin’s 44 came off 31 balls and included six fours and one six.
Alexa Stonehouse – Stonehouse was the pick of the Bears bowlers in their last outing against Durham. With her left arm swing, she was unfortunate to take only one wicket, bowling four overs for just 15 runs.
Marie Kelly (The Blaze) – The Blaze captain often leads from the front, scoring runs at the top of the order. That was evident when the teams met last month, as she hit 45 off 32 to help her team over the winning line.