The Oval Invincibles faced the Southern Brave in the final of the Women’s Hundred, with their usual skipper, Dané van Niekerk missing out yet again. 

Shabnim Ismail, MarizanneKapp, and stand-in captain Suzie Bates, made up the complement of the three overseas players. Whereas the Oval Invincibles went straight into the final, the Southern Brave made it a bit more difficult for themselves, having to play and win the Eliminator.

The Southern Brave beat the Trent Rockets by 2 runs in a nail-biting finish, booking their tickets to Lord’s for the Hundred Final. 

After two fails in the last two games, there was pressure on the Southern Brave opening partnership to perform, who up until then had done so well for them throughout the tournament.

Danni Wyatt and Smriti Mandhana started off steadily, scoring 33 off 30 balls, until Ismail took a outstanding running catch off her own bowling to dismiss Wyatt for just 15 off 16 balls.

She bowled a good-length ball, with Wyatt going for the big shot, but only managing to hit it straight up into the air. Ismail took off straight away, taking a low diving catch. 

This saw the end of the opening partnership. Shortly after, one of the Invincibles’ most exciting young bowlers, Sophia Smale, dismissed the dangerous Mandhana for just 18 runs off 21 balls. 

This was a tame dismissal, as Mandhana just palmed it straight back to the bowler, who took a comfortable catch in her follow through.

Tahlia McGrath who looked like she was struggling to get going, was dismissed for 20 off 17 balls by Eva Gray. The previous ball, McGrath had skewed one off the inside edge of her bat for 4 and the next ball was clean bowled. 

Two balls later, Alice Capsey then dismissed Sophia Dunkley, with Lauren Winfield-Hill taking a smart catch behind the stumps.The collapse for the South Brave was well and truly underway, as another two balls later Georgia Adams fell for a duck facing just two balls. 

Trying to go big, she was caught in the deep by Kapp at deep mid-wicket, off the bowling ofCapsey. Capsey finished with figures of 2-17 off 20 balls.

Ismail picked up another wicket, this time the one of 17-year-old Freya Kemp, with a straight ball that looked like it beat her for pace, going straight through the gate. Ismail was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with figures of 2-12 off 20 balls.

The Brave couldn’t form partnerships and kept losing wickets at regular intervals, as Kapp picked up Amanda-Jade Wellington with a back-of-a-length ball, for just 2 runs off 4 balls. Captain Suzie Bates took an easy catch at cover. The Brave stumbled to 101, scoring at just over a run a ball. 

In pursuit of 102, the Invincibles lost Winfield-Hill early, for just 5 off 7 balls. Coming down the wicket, she was stumped by Carla Rudd off the bowling of stalwart Anya Shrubsole.

Bates was dismissed in the unluckiest manner, hitting the ball straight into her back leg, with the ball ricocheting off her leg and hitting the stumps. She was bowled by Wellington for 3 off 6 balls.

Capsey got off to a flyer hitting three early boundaries, but was dismissed by Adams for 25 off 17, trying to reverse sweep the ball and completely missing it, getting clean bowled. 

After starting to build a partnership with Kapp, MadyVilliers was dismissed by Lauren Bell for 10 off the same number of balls, as she too was bowled through the gate. This ball swung in from outside off to hit the top of off stump, any bowler’s dream.

Kira Chathli then misread one, chopping it straight onto her stumps off the bowling of Wellington, who picked up her second wicket. With the Invincibles 5 down still needing 24 for victory, the game was well in the balance.

Kapp with her cool head and bucketloads of experience, played a valuable knock scoring 33 runs off 37 balls to seal the game and the second consecutive title for the Oval Invincibles.

She was well supported by Emily Windsor, who hit the winning runs and scored an unbeatable 13 off 15 balls.Kapp starred with both bat and ball, as well as in the field, earning her another Match Hero award, her second in a final of the Women’s Hundred.