The South-West region might be known as Welsh Fire in The Hundred, but the Women’s Eliminator was sadly curtailed by a Western Storm on Saturday at The Oval, after lightning and then torrential rain forced the players from the field with just 75 balls having been bowled.
Fire had won the toss and chosen to bat first, and somehow endeavoured not to lose a wicket for 45 balls, though Sophia Dunkley and Tammy Beaumont got enough chips over the infield to constitute a McDonalds super-sized meal.
But with a soggy outfield slowing up the ball enough to prevent most of those chips going over the boundary rope, they had only 59 on the board by the time Dunkley was caught slogging to deep midwicket.
Hayley Matthews looked like she was competing for the prize of most-inelegant-innings-in-the-competition, managing just one boundary from her 12-ball stay at the crease – an ugly edge over short third – and there was a certain amount of relief all round when she finally sent up a soft catch straight to Phoebe Litchfield at mid-off.
And yet by the time the players were sent off the field Fire were actually in a commanding position, thanks to a 5-ball 14 from Laura Harris. Harris ain’t pretty, but she knows how to get a job done when it’s needed; here, she did her usual bull-in-a-china-shop thing, reverse swivel-pulling her third ball to the boundary before smashing one for six over square leg two balls later. Even better, Tammy Beaumont (going along sedately enough at a run-a-ball 28*) then caught the bug from Harris, and smashed a six of her own.
At 104 for 2 after 75 balls, Fire were approaching the top of the typical “Ghost” score in The Hundred (adjusting for the reduction in balls available).
But with a storm rolling over South London, sadly that was that for Fire’s run in this year’s competition.
It wasn’t the way anyone wanted this team’s run to end, but let’s hope there isn’t too much disappointment in the dressing room tonight: Welsh Fire have done plenty to hold their heads up high. From being the team which nobody wanted to play for, who took the wooden spoon in the 2022 tournament, to a team which handed Southern Brave their first defeat on home soil and hit the highest team AND individual totals in three seasons of the competition… that’s a record to be proud of.
Spare a thought for Alex Hartley, who missed out on selection in what turned out to be her final chance at playing in a professional match – with Matthews now able to bowl again, coach Gareth Breese apparently preferred to go with Emily Windsor as an additional batting option. (Although arguably, it’s perhaps exactly that lack of sentimentality which brought the Fire within touching distance of their first Hundred trophy.)
No one can help the weather, of course… but as I write this, the sun is shining over The Oval, and the men are about to play out a full, 200-ball match in their own Eliminator. One can’t help but feel that there might be a fairer way to allocate the available match time in future years?
For now, the overriding feeling is simple: Welsh Fire Woz Robbed.
CRICKETher 