The much-anticipated and slightly new-look Women’s Hundred, with rebranded franchises in the 6th edition of the Women’s Hundred, finally got underway, with the rebranded MI London (formerly Oval Invincibles), led by skipper Hollie Armitage, up against the Sunrisers Leeds (formerly the Northern Superchargers), led by skipper Danielle Gibson, in the tournament opener on 21st July 2026 at Kennington Oval, London.
The Sunrisers Leeds skipper Danielle Gibson won the toss and opted to field first. The MI London openers Danielle Wyatt-Hodge and Hayley Matthews got their side off to a promising start with a 56-run opening stand. The Indian off-spinner Deepti Sharma broke the stand by sending an on-song Hayley Matthews (33 off 22 balls) back to the pavilion in the 8th set of the innings to provide the much-needed first breakthrough for the Sunrisers Leeds.
A 16-run stand for the 2nd wicket between Amelia Kerr and Danielle Wyatt-Hodge (29 off 20 balls) got them into a good position in the contest. Cassidy McCarthy got the crucial scalp of the White Ferns all-rounder Amelia Kerr (13 off 15 balls) to provide the 2nd breakthrough for her side in the 11th set of the innings.
Her departure triggered a serious collapse as MI London were eventually restricted to 107/8 in their quota of 100 deliveries, managing just 35 runs and losing their next six wickets, gifting them momentum to the Sunrisers Leeds heading into the innings break. Skipper Danielle Gibson (15-7-17-2), Deepti Sharma (15-5-20-2), Hannah Baker (10-3-12-1), and Annabel Sutherland (20-10-14-1) were the top performers with the ball for Sunrisers Leeds.
Chasing a target of 108, Sunrisers Leeds lost the wicket of their opening batter Bryony Smith in the first set of the run chase. Alexa Stonehouse provided the first breakthrough for MI London. All-rounder Jess Jonassen’s promotion to open the innings worked well as she injected the impetus into the run chase. An unfortunate run-out ended Jess Jonassen’s (14 off 8 balls) stay at the crease in the 4th set in the run chase to provide the 2nd breakthrough for Leeds.
Annabel Sutherland joined Phoebe Litchfield at the crease and the duo stitched a decisive 57-run partnership for the 2nd wicket, which put the visitors in the driver’s seat in the run chase. Kirstie Gordon cleaned up Phoebe Litchfield (43 off 26 balls) in the 10th set of the run chase to provide the crucial 3rd breakthrough for her side.
Skipper Danielle Gibson (12* off 7 balls) joined Annabel Sutherland (30* off 23 balls) at the crease, and the duo ensured that there were no further hiccups in the run chase. The pair guided them over the line with an unbeaten 28-run stand for the 4th wicket. The Sunrisers Leeds sealed the contest with 7 wickets in hand and 31 balls to spare to kickstart their campaign on a high.
Alexa Stonehouse (10-6-12-1) and Kirstie Gordon (10-2-17-1) were the only wicket-takers with the ball for MI London. Chenille Henry (15-7-16-0) was impressive in her spell with the ball for her side in the contest. Phoebe Litchfield was awarded the Player of the Match for her crucial knock (43 off 26 balls) with the bat for her side in the run chase. Her knock included 7 boundaries and a maximum.
Loves all things female cricket