England star Joe Root produced another masterclass under pressure, striking an unbeaten 64 from 41 balls to steer Trent Rockets Men to a nervy three-wicket win over Welsh Fire at Sophia Gardens on Sunday — a result that clinched the final knockout spot in this year’s Men’s Hundred.
Way too tense for my liking, they pulled it back. This format is difficult to gauge… I thought I had to hit a six in Green’s over, and I put a couple away.
It was Root’s second straight fifty after his 76 against Oval Invincibles, and his calm finish came after Rockets slipped from 116/2 to 136/7 in a dramatic collapse. Needing 15 from the final set of five, Root smacked Chris Green for six and four before Sam Hain sealed victory with a boundary.
Fire Fizzle Despite Eskinazi and Abell
Earlier, Welsh Fire posted 150/6 thanks to opener Stephen Eskinazi’s 42-ball 53 and captain Tom Abell’s quickfire 48, but their bowlers could not stop Root’s late charge. Their final fixture against Southern Brave is now a dead rubber. Rockets, meanwhile, can still top the group and book a direct route to the final if they beat Birmingham Phoenix on Wednesday and results elsewhere go their way.
Phoenix Men and Women Secure Wins
At Old Trafford, Birmingham Phoenix enjoyed a double celebration. Their men eased past Manchester Originals by seven wickets in a low-scoring clash, chasing 110 with 17 balls left. Joe Clarke (40 off 21) and Ben Duckett (49* off 38) led the charge, after Liam Livingstone and Chris Wood claimed two wickets apiece to restrict Originals to 109/7.
It was a good all-round effort — the bowlers set it up for us, and the batters finished the job.
In the women’s competition, Phoenix stunned Originals by 16 runs to dent their play-off hopes. Originals slumped to 95 all out in pursuit of 112, undone by poor shot selection and four run outs. Seren Smale top-scored with 29, but Megan Schutt’s 3-14 proved decisive.
It was obviously a tough start; the pitch was doing quite a bit. We had to play really good cricket to defend a low-ish total, and early wickets were key.
Gardner’s All-round Show Keeps Rockets Alive
In Cardiff, Ash Gardner inspired Trent Rockets Women to a 23-run victory over Welsh Fire. The captain struck 36 off 26 before taking the key wickets of Sophia Dunkley and Hayley Matthews, while Alana King added three scalps to restrict Fire to 122/9.
That was probably our first well-rounded performance. We did all three disciplines well. We need other results to go our way, but the focus is on winning games.
With Brave already assured of a place in the women’s final, the last play-off spots remain wide open as Rockets, Originals, Superchargers and Spirit fight for survival in the final week.
