Welsh Fire women secure first win of Hundred with 11-run win over Superchargers

Welsh Fire came back from the dead as Tammy Beaumont’s side secured their first win in the Hundred after beating the Northern Superchargers by 11 runs.

Having set the visitors a task of scoring 124 to win, they seemed out for the count after Superchargers skipper Hollie Armitage and South African star Laura Wolvaardt put on 90 for the third wicket to leave their team needed 21 to win off the last 17 balls with only two wickets down.

But then Wolvaardt, who took over from Beth Money as this season’s leading runscorer,, went for 41 and Beaumont’s side started to fight back.

From 103 for two, the Superchargers slumped to 112 for six as they lost four wickets in the space of 17 balls and added only 10 more runs. Nicola Carey was the star of the show for the home side with the ball as she removed Wolvaardt, and Armitage, who reached her highest total in the tournament with 40 off 38.

Knockout

While the Fire broke their duck for the season after four successive defeats to fall out of the running for the knockout phase, the Superchargers are still in with a long shot at reaching the top three.

Beaumont won the toss and opted to bat first as her side chased that elusive first win of the season. She then went out to open with Scotland international Sarah Bryce and helped to steer her side to 32 off the 25 balls in the powerplay.

She was then bowled by Jenny Gunn to leave the Fire on 41 for one off 33 balls. The experienced Rachel Haynes, returning to action after illness forced her to miss the last two defeats, did not last long, scoring four runs off her 10 balls to leave the Fire 56 for two at the halfway mark.

While Bryce kept swinging, notching four boundaries in her 36 from 30 balls, Annabel Sutherland also came good after Bryce and Fran Wilson had both departed within the space of 12 balls. Sutherland and Lauren Filer both hit sixes in a final flourish that saw them put on 17 off the final six balls.

Those runs, along with the 19 scored by Carey, proved vital as the Fire reached 123 for six. That at least gave them something to bowl at on a tricky wicket and they got off to a great start.

Alyssa Healyy fell to the third ball of the innings and then Bess Heath went for one run to leave the Superchargers struggling at 12 for two off the first 13 balls. Then came that 90 partnership between Wolvaardt and Armitage.

When Wolvaardt, who had scored an unbeaten 90 in the win over Manchester Originals last time out, then holed out at deep mid-on the late wobble was on. Beaumont’s team turned the screw and came up with that long awaited win.