The Hundred: BPH vs SOB Match Report

Southern Brave (SOB) outplayed Birmingham Phoenix (BPH) in all departments to win the first edition of the Hundred. A 36-ball 61 from Paul Stirling and Ross Whiteley’s blitz at the death helped them post 168. Despite some terrific hitting by Liam Livingstone, Birmingham Phoenix fell short by 32 runs, courtesy of some outstanding fielding and another excellent performance from the bowlers.

Birmingham Phoenix, who won the toss and chose to field, left out Tom Abell and included David Bedingham in the playing eleven. Meanwhile, Southern Brave was unchanged from the victory over Trent Rockets in the eliminator.

Adam Milne provided the first breakthrough in his second set after Quinton de Kock holed out to Dillon Pennington at short fine leg. However, Stirling kept the scoreboard ticking. He cleared the ropes in Imran Tahir’s first set, and Southern Brave was 25/1 at the end of the powerplay. But the former South Africa spinner bounced back with the wicket of James Vince, who lasted just eight balls.

The two wickets didn’t affect the scoring rate, as Stirling and Alex Davies rotated the strike and got occasional boundaries. The Ireland batsman registered his first half-century in the tournament after taking Tahir to the cleaners twice in his ten-ball spell. Southern Brave moved to 85/2 in 60 balls.

The half-century stand came to an end when Benny Howell got Stirling to nick one to Chris Benjamin. Tim David, the new batsman, struck two sixes in four balls. However, his attempt to hit a third ended up in the hands of Bedingham. Ross Whiteley joined Davies with 30 balls remaining in the innings.

Whiteley scored nine runs in Livingstone’s second set and hammered back-to-back sixes. Davies, too, hit a six off Brown before being dismissed for 27 in the 91st ball. Pennington conceded 18 runs – two sixes and a four – in the final five balls of the innings as Southern Brave ended up with 168.

Birmingham Phoenix, in their run-chase, saw both the openers depart in the powerplay. Debutant Bedingham returned to the dressing room for a duck thanks to a brilliant low catch at backward point by David, while Will Smeed gave a comfortable catch to Davies.

With Moeen Ali and Livingstone at the crease, the boundaries began to flow. The right-handed batter smacked consecutive sixes into the crowd. Vince introduced the spinner, but Livingstone continued to cause problems. Jake Lintott conceded 20 runs in the 10-ball spell. Birmingham Phoenix brought up their fifty in the 39th ball of the run-chase.

Despite conceding 17 runs, Chris Jordan’s first set of five was the turning point in the match. Livingstone, who struck two fours and a six in four balls, was five runs away from a half-century. He skied the fifth delivery, but it fell safe. However, David’s direct hit from deep cover caught Livingstone, running casually between the wickets, short of his crease at the striker’s end.

Moeen kept their hopes alive with a six off Lintott and Garton. But Miles Hammond went back to the pavilion after Garton took a superb catch at deep midwicket. Moeen, too, succumbed to pressure, leaving Birmingham Phoenix needing 72 runs from 34 balls.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Benjamin and Howell put up a fight, but Mills and Jordan were excellent at the death. They struggled to find the gaps and the target became improbable. Birmingham Phoenix finished their innings with a boundary, and Southern Brave players and fans began celebrations. Livingstone received the player of the tournament award for his sparkling knocks with the bat.

SOB 168/5 in 100 balls (P R Stirling 61, R Whiteley 44*; A Milne 2/8)

BPH 136/5 in 100 balls (L Livingstone 46, M Ali 36; T Mills 1/13)

Player of the Match

Stirling peaked at the right moment as he scored an invaluable half-century which paved the way for Southern Brave to post a challenging total. The franchise was in a difficult position when they lost De Kock and Vince early. But Stirling, who came on as a replacement for Devon Conway, didn’t succumb to pressure and played his shots. He gave a tough time for Tahir and maintained a healthy scoring rate.

Top Fantasy XI

P R Stirling (87 pts), L Livingstone (85 pts), A Milne (68 pts), R Whiteley (68 pts), B Howell (52 pts), M Ali (47 pts), G Garton (45 pts), A Davies (42 pts), C Benjamin (38 pts), I Tahir (37 pts), C Overton (37 pts)