London Spirit Women produced a strong batting performance to defeat Trent Rockets Women by five wickets in the eighth match of The Hundred Women’s Competition 2026 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, on July 26, 2026 (Sunday). Chasing 143, Spirit reached 146/5 from 97 balls and completed the chase with three balls remaining. Nadine de Klerk played the key innings with an unbeaten 41 from 22 balls, while Grace Harris and Marie Kelly also made valuable contributions.
After winning the toss, London Spirit chose to field first and their bowlers made a good start. Trent Rockets lost Beth Mooney for a first-ball duck when Marizanne Kapp struck immediately. Kapp then dismissed Sophia Dunkley for 23 from 15 balls, leaving the Rockets under early pressure. Sophie Luff scored 24 from 19 deliveries, but Kapp continued to trouble the batters and finished with excellent figures of 3/12 from her 20 balls.
Trent Rockets needed someone to rebuild their innings, and captain Ashleigh Gardner stepped up with an attacking 34 from 22 balls. She struck five fours and kept the scoring moving during the middle part of the innings. Bess Heath then played a valuable unbeaten innings of 32 from 20 balls, hitting four fours, while Georgia Elwiss scored 13 before being retired out. The Rockets finished on 142/7 from their 100 balls.
London Spirit started the chase positively, with Grace Harris taking the attack to the Rockets bowlers. She scored 37 from only 20 balls, hitting three fours and three sixes at a strike rate of 185.00. Amy Jones added 21 from 19 balls and helped Spirit make a quick start. Harris was eventually dismissed by Ashleigh Gardner, while Jones also fell soon after, but the visitors remained in a strong position to chase down the target.
Marie Kelly then played an important innings of 39 from 26 balls, hitting three fours and one six. She helped keep the chase under control and built a useful partnership with Nadine de Klerk. Kelly brought up her fifty from 30 balls during the innings, showing how quickly she had scored. Although she was dismissed when Spirit reached 130, the foundation was already strong enough for the visitors to finish the match successfully.
De Klerk took responsibility in the final stage and remained unbeaten on 41 from just 22 balls. Her innings included two fours and three sixes, and she scored at an outstanding strike rate of 186.36. Charis Pavely stayed with her on two not out as London Spirit reached 146/5 in 97 balls. De Klerk’s powerful finish helped Spirit cross the target with three balls remaining and complete a five-wicket victory.
For Trent Rockets, Gardner was their most successful bowler, taking 2/24 from 20 balls. Samantha Bates, Georgia Elwiss and Katie Levick also claimed one wicket each, but the Rockets could not stop Spirit’s batters from scoring quickly during the chase. The 142-run total looked competitive, yet London’s strong start and excellent finish proved enough to take the game away from the home side.
The result gave London Spirit Women four points, while Trent Rockets Women finished without any points from the match. Nadine de Klerk was named Player of the Match for her unbeaten match-winning innings. The victory also showed Spirit’s batting depth, with Harris providing an explosive start, Kelly keeping the chase steady and de Klerk finishing the job.
In the points table, London Spirit moved to sixth place with 4 points from 2 matches, including one win and one loss, and a Net Run Rate of -1.434. Trent Rockets are third with 4 points from 2 matches, having also won one and lost one, but their NRR of +2.685 keeps them above Spirit.
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