Tymal Mills. (Photo Source: John Walton/PA Images via Getty Images)
Courtesy of a Tymal Mills bowling masterclass, Southern Brave picked up a comfortable nine-wicket win over Welsh Fire and moved to number three on the points table. Notably, batting first, the Tom Abell-led side struggled to get going as Craig Overton and George Garton were incredible with the new ball in Cardiff. Stephen Eskinazi was the sole warrior with the bat as seven of their batters failed to score in double digits.
Meanwhile, Mills completed his second Hundred hat trick in the final over of the match. The ace pacer first dismissed Ben Green and later picked up the wickets of Haris Rauf and David Payne, to complete the hat-trick. The 31-year-old in total picked up four wickets while Garton picked up three and Overton picked up two wickets, respectively. Courtesy of their collective effort, the Braves restricted Welsh Fire to 87 runs.
When it came to the chase, Finn Allen and Devon Conway were magnificent with the bat. The Kiwis built a partnership of 53 runs and that set the tone of the match. Finn hit 31 runs off 22 deliveries while Conway hit 35* runs off 25 balls. Skipper Leus du Plooy came to bat at number three and scored 17* runs off 12 deliveries as the Braves won the match with absolute ease.
Both Braves and Welsh alive in the race to qualify for Playoffs
Both Southern Braves and Welsh Fire have five points each after five matches in the ongoing The Hundred tournament. They are third and fourth on the table respectively and hence, are very much alive to qualify for the playoffs of the competition. Northern Superchargers meanwhile are second on the points table with the same amount of points but with a lesser game as well.
Notably, the Braves will take on Birmingham Phoenix in their next match on August 16. The Moeen Ali-led side has been very poor so far with just two points in five matches and they are languishing at the bottom of the table. Hence, the du Plooy-led side will back themselves to get the job done. Welsh, on the other hand, will face Trent Rockets in their next match, which can prove to be a bit tricky.