Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 2022 Round-up: September 11

The Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 2022 saw action unfold between eight different teams as they fought in four games in an attempt to seal the playoffs berth. Here is a brief report of the action which transpired on Sunday (September 11).

Lightning vs Sunrisers

Lightning skipper Kathryn Bryce smashed her second century of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy to lead her team's fightback and thump winless Sunrisers by 70 runs at Chelmsford on September 11.

At one point, the Lightning were struggling at 129 for six but Bryce’s masterful knock of 104 from 109 helped her team post 230 for nine – and that proved to be a winning total. With the ball, Kirstie Gordon took four for 31 as Lightning rolled their opponents for 160 to register a victory by 70 runs.

South East Stars vs Central Sparks

The South East Stars cornered the Central Sparks by 59 runs in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy at Beckenham on Sunday (September 11). Put into bat first by Sparks, the South East Stars did well to pose a challenging total of 254/9 courtesy captain Alice Davidson-Richards and Chloe Brewer who were the top scorers with 50 and 57 respectively.

Eva Gray led the way with the ball for the Stars as the Eve Jones-led side were bundled out for 195/9 in 50 overs. From the very first powerplay, Sparks couldn't get the momentum going, losing wickets at regular intervals. Although the lower batters showed some grit, it was not enough to get past the Stars. Gray bagged three wickets while the skipper returned with 2 wickets.

Southern Vipers vs Thunder 

Southern Vipers won their fifth straight Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy victory and guarantee a spot in the knockout stages of the tournament after thrashing Thunder by six wickets on Sunday (September 11).

After winning the toss, Thunder opted to bat first at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. Vipers' strike bowler Tara Norris got three early wickets to force Thunder on the backfoot

Thunder had set 203 mainly due to Emma Lamb and Ellie Threlkeld’s half-centuries. In reply, Vipers stuttered themselves when they were reduced to 29 for three but an 89-run stand for the sixth wicket between Emily Windsor and Chloe Hill took the hosts towards the win with eighteen balls to spare.

Western Storm vs Northern Diamonds 

Northern Diamonds beat Western Storm by 104 runs to secure their place in the knockout stages of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy on a record-shattering day at the Cooper Associates Ground in Taunton.

Diamonds won the toss, elected to bat first, and racked up a mammoth competition-best total of 334-6, eclipsing the previous record score of 224-7 achieved by South East Stars against Sunrisers at Chelmsford in May 2021. Hollie Armitage scored her first professional hundred to top-score for his team with a superb run-a-ball 131 not out, accruing 10 fours and a six and sharing in stands of 125 and 132 with Lauren Winfield-Hill and Bess Heath for the second and fifth wickets respectively.

Chasing 335 was never going to be easy for the Western Storm batters. Katie Levick claimed 4 for 41 and Linsey Smith and the centurion Armitage took two wickets apiece as Storm were dismissed for 230 in 45.4 overs. 

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