The triple-header at the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy on Friday saw South Group toppers, Southern Vipers face off against bottom-dwelling Sunrisers. Vipers registered their 4th win on the trot, thrashing Sunrisers by 49 runs, thanks to a match-winning knock from the captain, Georgia Adams.
In a very low and slow wicket at Southampton, Adams won the toss and decided to bat first. The opening batsman received a blow when she lost her partner to a run-out. The captain laid a solid foundation in the middle overs in her partnerships with Maia Bouchier, Paige Scholfield, and Windsor. However, the most important of them all came with Charlotte Dean. In a low scoring wicket, Dean struck 4 boundaries to score a brisk 39 off 41 balls in a 64-run partnership with her captain.
Georgia Adams scored quickly as well, especially in the later overs, scoring 89 off 108 balls with 10 balls racing to the boundary. Vipers ended with 232 runs on board, getting bowled out before their quota of 50 overs. However, this above-par score proved too much to digest for underperforming Sunrisers, who haven’t yet managed to register a win in the tournament.
They were bundled out for 183, with a highest of 39 from Joanne Gardner. No batsman other than Adams managed to cross the cursed 39-run mark. Left-arm quickie, Tara Norris, was impressive with the ball once again, picking up 3 wickets for just 27 runs in her 7 overs. She received excellent support from Dean and Providence, who picked up 2 wickets each.
The comfortable win gave the Vipers the maximum 5 points and now sits comfortably at the top of the table with 19 points. Their upcoming match against second-placed Western Storm will be extremely crucial, as only one team from every group will qualify for the RHF Trophy Finals. For the Sunrisers, it’s all about redemption now – to get off the bottom and play party-spoilers, if possible.
SCORECARD SUMMARY
SOUTHERN VIPERS: 232(49.5 overs)
Georgia Adams: 89 (108)
Charlotte Dean: 39 (41)
Katie Midwood: 2/33(10)
Joanne Gardner: 1/35(5.5)
SUNRISERS: 183(43.5 overs)
Joanne Gardner: 39 (54)
Alice Macleod: 35 (45)
Tara Norris: 3/37(7)
Providence Cowdrill: 2/21(4.5)
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