MI London, led by skipper Hollie Armitage, were up against London Spirit, led by skipper Charlie Dean, in the London Derby at the Kennington Oval, London, in the 2nd game of the double-header on Wednesday in the ongoing 6th edition of the Women’s Hundred 2026, on 29th July 2026.
Ashleigh Gardner-led Trent Rockets defeated Welsh Fire by 8 wickets at Cardiff earlier in the day.
The home side made a couple of changes: Alice Monaghan replaced Kalea Moore, and Kirstie Gordon returned to the side courtesy of an injury to Danielle Wyatt-Hodge in the starting 11. London Spirit made one change: Trudy Johnson replaced Josie Groves in the starting 11.
The London Spirit skipper Charlie Dean won the toss and opted to bowl first. Alice Davidson-Richards was promoted to open the innings alongside Hayley Matthews in the absence of Danielle Wyatt-Hodge. The pair got them off to a steady start with a 30-run opening stand. Marizanne Kapp broke the stand by sending Alice Davidson-Richards (10 off 14 balls) back to the pavilion in the 5th set of the innings to provide the first breakthrough for London Spirit.
Nadine de Klerk accounted for the scalp of Hayley Matthews (18 off 11 balls) in the very next set to bring the Spirit firmly back into the contest. Amelia Kerr joined skipper Hollie Armitage at the crease, and the pair laid a solid platform with a crucial 46-run stand for the 3rd wicket, which took them closer to the 100-run mark. Marizanne Kapp returned and cleaned up the opposition skipper Hollie Armitage (23 off 21 balls) back to the pavilion in the 13th set of the innings to provide the crucial 3rd breakthrough for her side.
However, it was the blockbuster fireworks towards the backend from the West Indian all-rounder Chinelle Henry (33* off 12 balls) en route to an unbeaten 55-run stand for the 5th wicket, which took them past the 150-run mark. The home side ended with 151/4 in their quota of 100 deliveries. Amelia Kerr (49* off 32 balls) was just one short of her well-deserved half-century.
Marizanne Kapp (20-10-24-2), Grace Harris (5-2-4-1), and skipper Charlie Dean (20-7-21-0) were impressive with the ball for London Spirit. Nadine de Klerk (20-2-48-1) played her part with the ball for her side.
Chasing a stiff target of 152, the visitors got off to the worst possible start as they lost the wicket of Grace Harris on the first ball of the run chase. Chenille Henry provided the first breakthrough for the home side. Marie Kelly joined the wicket-keeper batter Amy Jones at the crease, and the duo led the recovery with a much-needed 68-run stand for the 2nd wicket.
Kirstie Gordon broke the stand by sending Marie Kelly (45 off 28 balls) back to the pavilion in the 10th set of the run chase, to provide the crucial 2nd breakthrough for her side. Marizanne Kapp joined opening batter Amy Jones at the crease, and the duo stitched another crucial 51-run stand for the 2nd wicket, which also took them closer to the 120-run mark and kept them alive in the contest.
Hayley Matthews brought MI London back into the contest by dismissing Marizanne Kapp (25 off 13 balls) in the 15th set of the run chase. The game eventually went down to the wire; the equation eventually came down to 9 runs required off the final set of the run chase. Hollie Armitage tossed the ball to Hayley Matthews, and she kept her composure under pressure and delivered, backed up by smart tactics in the field by Amelia Kerr. MI London restricted the Spirit to 151/5 in their quota of 100 deliveries.
As a result, the game ended in a tie, which meant both sides shared a couple of points each, giving the home side their first points of the 6th edition of the tournament. Amy Jones (49 off 36 balls), Nadine de Klerk (13 off 10 balls), and Deandra Dottin (13* off 12 balls) played their part with the bat for London Spirit. Kirstie Gordon (20-7-29-2), Hayley Mathews (20-4-33-2), Chinelle Henry (10-4-14-1), and Nicola Carey (20-6-25-0) were impressive with the ball for MI London.
Marie Kelly was awarded the Player of the Match courtesy of her impressive outing of 45 (28 balls) with the bat for the visitors.
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