Northern Superchargers 100-8
Southern Brave 102-5
Southern Brave won by five wickets
Rhianna Southby put on a sensational wicketkeeping clinic as Southern Brave returned to winning ways with a thumping five-wicket victory over Northern Superchargers.
Southby affected a Hundred record four wickets – two catches and two stumpings – in her second format match in front of an Ageas Bowl record 9,813.
The retiring Anya Shrubsole starred with two wickets before Georgia Adams’ three for 21 as Superchargers were stifled to just 100.
Maia Bouchier took control of the chase with 31 as Brave eased to the total to make it two wins from three, while Superchargers’ away day blues continued.
Shrubsole won the toss, chose to bowl, and continued her farewell tour with her greatest hits to dismiss overseas duo Jemimah Rodrigues and Pheobe Litchfield. The former with a textbook extravagant in swinging, the latter brilliantly caught on the rise by Southby.
Marie Kelly and Hollie Armitage collaborated with a 43 stand before Southby stooped to take a stumping off a low bouncing ball to see off Armitage before taking an under edge from Alice Davidson-Richards on review.
Southby, who didn’t play in the Southern Vipers’ successful T20 Charlotte Edwards Cup campaign, continued her reign of terror behind the stumps to stump Kelly – who top-scored with an anchoring 39.
A sticky pitch assisted turn for Adams, Kalea Moore and Chloe Tryon, who bowled the bulk of the middle balls, but it was the unrested Lauren Bell and Shrubsole whole went at under a run a ball at either end of the innings.
Bess Heath chipped to mid-off, Leah Dobson was caught and bowled by Adams and Kate Cross was deceived by a cunning Bell slower ball.
Danni Wyatt initially looked the freest flowing batter on display with five sweetly-struck boundaries but came unstuck when she drilled Kate Cross to point.
Indian Smriti Mandhana ticked through the runs with a l’aise au fait style while Bouchier accelerated after a slow start.
Bouchier had been eight off her first 14 balls but exploded with a pair of boundaries and a six in three successive balls.
Mandhana and Georgia Adams swung to deep midwicket, while Bouchier rolled on with a stylish cut shot before she was caught and bowled by Vipers teammate Linsey Smith’s full toss with 14 still required.
Smith and Wareham had both taken two wickets for 11 and 15 respectively to scare the Brave, with Freya Kemp bowled by Wareham to put the hosts five down.
But Tryon pulled a boundary sent Brave top with 13 balls to spare, with Superchargers still only winning two games away from Headingley in their third season.
