Southern Brave, led by skipper Sophie Molineux, were up against Welsh Fire, led by skipper Sophie Devine, at the Rose Bowl, Southampton, in the 2nd game of the ongoing 6th edition of the Women’s Hundred on 22nd July 2026.
We witnessed a dominant performance from the defending champions (formerly the Northern Superchargers), the rebranded Sunrisers Leeds, as they defeated the Hollie Armitage-led MI London by 7 wickets in the tournament opener at Kennington Oval, London on 21st July 2026.
The Welsh Fire, led by skipper Sophie Devine, won the toss and opted to field first. The Southern Brave wicket-keeper batter Lizelle Lee did the heavy lifting of the scoring as her fellow-opener Maia Bouchier struggled to get off the blocks. Heather Graham eventually got the better of Maia Bouchier in the 5th set of the innings to provide the first breakthrough for Welsh Fire.
Laura Wolvaardt joined the wicket-keeper batter and opener Lizelle Lee at the crease, and the duo stitched a crucial 26-run stand for the 2nd wicket, which also took them past the 50-run mark. Heather Graham returned and got the big scalp of Lizelle Lee (31 off 26 balls) in the 9th set of the innings to provide the much-needed 2nd breakthrough for her side.
The 37-run stand for the 4th wicket between Laura Wolvaardt and skipper Sophie Molineux (22 off 16 balls), followed by a 15-run stand for the 5th wicket between Jodi Grewcock and Laura Wolvaardt, provided the impetus to the innings. Southern Brave posted a competitive total of 126/7 in their quota of 100 deliveries. Laura Wolvaardt stayed unbeaten on 45* (36 balls).
Heather Graham (20-9-19-4), Sophia Smale (20-7-21-1), Georgia Wareham (20-7-20-0) and skipper Sophie Devine (10-4-18-1) were impressive with the ball for Welsh Fire.
Chasing a target of 127, Welsh Fire got off to a disappointing start, losing the wicket of their opening batter Ella McCaughan in the 2nd set of the run chase. Skipper Sophie Molineux provided the first breakthrough for her side. Freya Kemp joined Georgia Voll at the crease and the duo stitched a massive and much-needed 75-run stand for the 2nd wicket, putting the visitors in a comfortable position in the run chase.
Smart work from Jemimah Rodrigues in the field ended Freya Kemp’s (39 off 29 balls) stay at the crease in the form of a run-out in the 12th set of the run chase to provide the much-needed 2nd breakthrough for the home side. A vital 22-run stand for the 4th wicket between Georgia Wareham and Georgia Voll took them past the 100-run mark.
Tilly Corteen-Coleman got the big scalp of Georgia Voll (52 off 39 balls) in the 17th set of the run chase to provide the 4th breakthrough for Southern Brave. Voll completed her maiden half-century in the tournament before getting dismissed.
That over, turned things around dramatically for the Southern Brave as they not only squeezed the opposition but also kept chipping away with wickets at regular intervals. As a result, the Welsh Fire were restricted to 118/8 in their quota of 100 deliveries, falling 8 runs short of the target. The home side scripted a remarkable fightback as they picked up 4 wickets for just 9 runs in the last 15 balls of the run chase.
Skipper Sophie Molineux (20-10-14-3), Lauren Bell (20-9-20-2), Tilly Corteen Coleman (20-5-22-2), and Sarah Glenn (20-5-19-0) were impressive with the ball for Southern Brave. Skipper Sophie Molineux was awarded the Player of the Match for her all-round show, scoring a vital 22 (16 balls) with the bat and returning with match figures of 20-10-14-3 in her spell with the ball, playing a crucial role as Southern Brave kept their calm despite shelling as many as 7 catches in the field in the 2nd innings to get those crucial two points and a morale boosting win to kickstart their campaign in the ongoing edition of the tournament.
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