Sun 1 August, 11:00
Report: Birmingham Phoenix Women v Trent Rockets
Birmingham Phoenix suffered another narrow defeat in The Hundred as Trent Rockets won by 11 runs in front of another record crowd for a women’s domestic game outside of London.
With a crowd in attendance of 9,633, bowling first, Birmingham Phoenix ran into a late salvo from Heather Graham whose unbeaten 44 (21 balls, four fours, two sixes) lifted the Rockets to 145 for five.
After choosing to bat, the Rockets were given a strong start by Johnson. The Aussie moved fluently to 29 (21 balls) and looked set to dominate the innings when she perished in the unluckiest fashion. Rachel Priest timed a straight drive sweetly and when bowler Abtaha Maqsood deflected the ball on to the stumps, Johnson was stranded out of her ground.
Priest (18, 15 balls) skied a return catch to Emily Arlott but Nat Sciver (27, 23) kept the runs ticking over before charging and missing at Kirstie Gordon and falling stumped.
As the Phoenix bowled tightly, the Rockets needed some late impetus at 118 for five from 91 balls and Graham supplied it. The last nine balls yielded 27, including six from the last ball which Graham lifted over long on.
The Phoenix started strongly as Eve Jones and Shafali Verma bashed 29 in 14 balls but both then fell in the space of four balls. Jones chipped Johnson to mid on where Sciver took a great, low catch running in and then Verma was bowled by Katherine Brunt.
The Rockets followed up with another big blow when Sciver removed home captain Amy Jones, caught at mid-wicket. When Erin Burns and Gwenan Davies sent up catches, five wickets had fallen for 29 runs in 34 balls.
That was 58 for five after 48 balls and there was no way back for the Phoenix. Katie Mack offered some resistance with 24 (29 balls) and Issy Wong hit successive sixes in a merry 11-ball 27 which lifted the crowd but the Rockets closed the game out very efficiently.
