Sunrisers Leeds will face Trent Rockets in the Sunrisers Leeds Hundred final after beating Southern Brave by five wickets in the women’s Eliminator at The Kia Oval on Friday.
Chasing 115, Sunrisers were cruising at 95-3 with 25 balls remaining when Issy Wong took two wickets in two balls to give Brave a foothold. The England seamer finished with 3-21, removing Lauren Winfield-Hill for 37 and trapping Sunrisers skipper Dani Gibson lbw first ball.
But Deepti Sharma held firm with an unbeaten 28, and Jess Jonassen hit the winning boundary off Lauren Bell with 11 balls to spare, sealing a five-wicket victory.
Brave’s batting lets them down
Southern Brave’s innings was the defining factor. They played out 41 dot balls and hit just 13 boundaries in a stuttering 114-7, leaving a target that was always likely to prove insufficient.
Lizelle Lee gave them their only moments of intent, scoring 32 off 25 balls including the game’s only six. But the rest of the order failed to build on her work. Maia Bouchier managed 15 off 17, Laura Wolvaardt fell for eight, and captain Sophie Molineux finished on 22 not out off 24 balls. Charli Knott tried to inject momentum with 25 off 21, but had too much ground to recover.
Sunrisers’ bowling was disciplined throughout. Young leg-spinner Hannah Baker took 2-13, and the attack did not bowl a single wide, only the 12th time that has happened in 238 full innings in the history of The Hundred.
Bell was metronomic with 1-14, and Wong bowled at an average pace of 70mph across her spell, her quickest in the tournament. The wicket ball that dismissed Winfield-Hill was 11mph slower, a well-disguised slower delivery that briefly brought Brave back into the contest.
Sunrisers Leeds Hundred final bid built on batting depth
Winfield-Hill anchored the reply after Sunrisers lost both openers early, and with the target small, there was little need for panic. The chase was completed without significant contributions from Phoebe Litchfield and Annabel Sutherland, who scored four and 17 respectively, underlining the batting depth at Sunrisers’ disposal.
Sharma and Jonassen, who opened earlier in the tournament before swapping positions with Litchfield, weathered Wong’s late burst with composure. Once Jonassen hit Bell through the boundary, the match was over.
The Sunrisers Leeds Hundred final appearance continues a strong run of form for the Headingley-based franchise, formerly known as Northern Superchargers. They ended the group stage on a four-match winning streak, while Brave, despite winning their first five games, lost three of their last matches and entered the Eliminator with fading momentum. The contrast in confidence was clear on the pitch.
A victory at Lord’s Cricket Ground on Sunday would give Sunrisers Leeds back-to-back Hundred titles. Rockets finished top of the table in the regular season, so Sunrisers will need to be at their best.
According to Sky Sports, the women’s final is scheduled for 2.15pm on Sunday 16 August at Lord’s, with the men’s final to follow at 6pm.
