Yesterday, Birmingham Phoenix endured a tough defeat against Welsh Fire. They didn’t make the mark, losing by eight wickets in a decisive group stage game of The Hundred men’s tournament. The play around the ground at Edgbaston. After initially posting a modest target of 139 runs, the Phoenix failed to defend it. The chase down score in record time, 89 balls to be exact, was a blistering display of batting pyrotechnics that left spectators wanting more.
Birmingham Phoenix were restricted to 138 runs for the loss of nine wickets in their 100 balls. Jacob Bethell was the top-scorer, making 38 runs from 28 balls to lead the way for the Phoenix. Despite several promising starts, the innings struggled to find momentum and repeatedly threatened to ignite but never fully did. New home favourite Liam Livingstone entertained the crowd with a couple of huge sixes. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to cause much more damage as the Welsh Fire bowlers soon removed him.
Welsh Fire’s response was swift and determined. Recent signing Stephen Eskinazi had a match-winning contribution of 42 runs from 24 balls, with Jonny Bairstow hitting 35 off 21 balls to seal the victory. Steve Smith anchored the innings with an unbeaten 47 runs off 36 balls, ensuring that Welsh Fire reached their target comfortably.
On the bowling side for Welsh Fire, Chris Green gave an exciting performance and was particularly impressive, claiming three for 27. On debut alongside him, Ben Kellaway made waves, taking 2/10 from his six overs to destroy the New Zealand batting line-up.
Welsh Fire and Birmingham Phoenix both currently sit on eight points after this result. Both sides are still eight points adrift of the third-placed Northern Superchargers. Just two games left in the tournament! Tension building on both sides. In the first round of play-off pressure, both teams faced the prospect of desperate play-offs rugby.
Leave a Reply