Sam Billings led from the front to help Oval Invincibles (OVI) register a second win in the Hundred. The home side chased down a modest 121 with seven balls to spare thanks to Billings’ 40 and a quickfire 28 from Laurie Evans. Earlier in the match, Ben Duckett held the Welsh Fire innings together with an excellent 65 off 52 balls.
After being asked to bat first, the visitors saw their openers depart within the first 15 balls. Reece Topley, who conceded a six and four in his first set of five, sent Tom Banton back to the pavilion in the 11th ball. The left-arm pacer ran Josh Cobb out in the following delivery. Duckett, the stand-in captain, kept the scoreboard ticking with boundaries off Tom Curran, Saqib Mahmood, and Sunil Narine.
Tabraiz Shamsi grabbed a maiden wicket in Hundred, cleaning up Glenn Phillips, who struggled to get going. Welsh Fire batters upped the tempo, with Duckett and Leus du Plooy adding 39 for the fourth wicket. However, the South African holed out to Jordan Clark for 17, and Curran removed James Neesham in the next ball.
Welsh Fire couldn’t rotate the strike as Topley and Narine kept Matt Critchley at bay. Mahmood dismissed Critchley for 3, while Duckett left frustrated at the other end. He managed to face only four balls in the 16-ball partnership. The 26-year-old brought up his fifty and punished Curran with a six and a four in the final five balls. Welsh Fire finished on 121/7 in 100 balls.
Jason Roy, who struck two boundaries in David Payne’s first set of five, gave away his wicket after he skied the ball to Duckett at mid-off in the sixth ball of the run-chase. Sunil Narine and opener Will Jacks put the pressure back on Welsh Fire bowlers. The duo added 39 runs in 18 balls. But Neesham left Oval Invincibles in a bother after picking up the wicket of Jacks and Narine in the space of four balls.
Billings and Colin Ingram, who successfully reviewed an LBW decision and survived a close stumping, took charge. The Oval Invincibles captain hammered Critchley for a six and scored a boundary off Milnes. Ingram’s stay at the crease ended when Qais Ahmad trapped him in front of the wicket. They needed 49 from 46 balls.
The new pair Billings and Laurie Evans dealt in singles and doubles. A boundary off Neesham’s final set of five eased the pressure on Oval Invincibles. With 13 needed from 10 balls, Evans hammered two sixes and a four to seal two points for his side. It was Welsh Fire’s second consecutive defeat in the tournament.
WEF 121/7 in 100 balls (B Duckett 65, T Curran 3/29)
OVI 125/4 in 93 balls (S Billings 40*, L Evans 28*; Neesham 2/23)
Player of the Match
After a disappointing outing against Northern Superchargers, Billings played a calm and composed knock to steer his side to a victory. He played every ball on its merit and pounced on loose deliveries. Despite the asking rate climbing a little after Ingram’s dismissal, Billings didn’t panic but rotated the strike well. It allowed Evans to settle in and go for the big shots at the end.
Top Fantasy XI
B Duckett (94 pts), T Curran (79 pts), S Billings (56 pts), J Neesham (56 pts), R Topley (53 pts), L Evans (45 pts), S Mahmood (39 pts), Q Ahmad (35 pts), S Narine (32 pts) T Shamsi (31 pts), M Milnes (29 pts)
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Parameswaran Sankaranarayanan
Parameswaran Sankaranarayan is a sports enthusiast who has worked in print, website, and other digital platforms. He was part of the editorial team of first-ever Indian football-based website - IndianFootball.com (now defunct) - and passionately follows the latest happenings in world football. During his time as a journalist, he had the opportunity to interact with some of the iconic personalities in Indian sports and witness some memorable moments in Indian football.
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