Discover how Birmingham Phoenix defended the tournament’s second-highest historic total.
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Epic Run Fest
The Edgbaston crowd witnessed something special in the latest encounter in The Hundred Men’s Competition.
Not only did the hosts provide an unbelievable show of power-hitting, with a staggering total of 29 sixes, but they also defended a huge total with a clinical performance that will live long in the memory of all who were fortunate enough to see it.
Birmingham Phoenix delivered a ten-run win over Trent Rockets, who chased down what proved to be a huge total for a T20 match.
Phoenix Start Strong
From the very first ball, the home side made their intentions known on a stunningly good pitch that provided batsmen with everything they needed to score freely. Will Smeed and Joe Clarke absolutely dismantled the Rockets’ bowling attack in the early exchanges and set the platform for a huge total.
Clarke, with the freedom afforded to him at the top of the order, laid into the bowling in sublime fashion, hitting seven fours and four sixes in his wonderful fifty-eight from thirty-three balls.
He and Smeed provided the strike for each other to a tee as they plundered fifty-four runs from the first twenty-five balls bowled to leave the fielders stranded at all opportunities.
Clarke Shines
Joe Clarke was the standout performer in the top order, smashing the ball all over the ground with a rampant innings that saw him score at a phenomenal strike rate. Clarke, named man of the match, scored sixty-eight from thirty-three deliveries.
He sent up seven beautifully struck boundaries and four huge sixes all around the ground while displaying a rampant attacking intent that kept the bowlers on the back foot for long periods. Clarke was rightly delighted to have played such a big innings at the top of the order.
Middle Order Mayhem
When Clarke and Smeed eventually fell, the middle order wasted no time in continuing the scoring assault. Rehan Ahmed came out and smashed five sixes on the bounce to a raucous reception from the home fans.
The skipper joined him, Donovan Ferreira, who came out and absolutely demolished the bowling in the late innings before falling cheaply after hitting three maximums from just nine deliveries.
The wonderful partnership between Ahmed and Ferreira saw the score rocket to two-hundred and fourteen for six, a phenomenal total that would make many a T20 match record.
Rockets Launch Gung Ho
The Rockets needed to reply with a similarly scintillating total if they were to stand any chance of mounting a challenge, and they unsurprisingly launched gung ho at the start. The openers, Ben Duckett and Finn Allen, laid a fabulous foundation for the total and were both in sublime touch throughout the powerplay.
They added fifty-four runs without losing their shirts as they scampered all over the ground. For a short while, it seemed as if record-breaking may well be on the cards for the Rockets.
Tariq Turns It On
When the new skipper, Usman Tariq, was called upon to bowl after the first change, it was to produce one of the outstanding spells of the match. His round-arm off-break bowling saw him immediately peg back the dangerous Allen at long-on.
He then sent up a beauty to remove the brilliant Tim David with a beautifully disguised off-break as his leg-spin had looked deadly in the early exchanges. Tariq’s mystery spin was proving a nightmare to pick up for his own teammates, with both Allen and David failing to make full contact.
Momentum Shifts
With Allen and Duckett both falling soon after, the Rockets suddenly found run acceleration extremely difficult to come by. Scott Currie, bought by Birmingham for a huge fee, sent up a stunning delivery that nipped away to remove Duckett.
To fall just short of his first T20 fifty was, however, no great concern for the skipper, Duckett, who was clearly delighted to be involved in such a historic chase. The middle order had struggled to apply the same pressure as the top three had displayed during their wonderful stand.
Banton Offers Late Fight
Tom Banton was the next to fall, wasting no time trying to hit the last few balls for six. He played one of the most spectacular late innings of the season in reply to the brilliant Phoenix total, hitting sixty-seven from just thirty-two deliveries.
His efforts were well supported by the superb bowling of Calvin Harrison, who sent up his only two sixes at the death to help post a competitive score for the chase.
Biggest Total On Record
The Trent Rockets eventually fell ten runs short of the mighty score posted by their hosts, leaving a stunned crowd to enjoy the unbelievable spectacle that had been played out before them.
With so many sixes scored, the game was a true advertisement for the shorter forms of the game. Birmingham Phoenix proved once again that they have a fearsome batting line-up that can decimate any bowling attack. The wonderful home crowd was left delighted by the thrilling contest that had seen such a colossal score posted.
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