It was double delight for Staffordshire women as they defeated Bucks women in both of their T/20 matches at Ascott Estate on Sunday.
Match 1.
Staffordshire won by 8 wickets.
Staffordshire won the toss and elected to field. Bucks added 60 for the first wicket before Amelie Bishop was dismissed by Anusha Chauhan for 25 in the 7th over. Annie Townsend then quickly followed for a breezy 31 made from only 20 balls as the Staffordshire bowlers began to put the brakes on. Cara Duggan then made an aggressive 43 from only 27 balls, which included six 4’s and a 6. Late runs from Tilly Fellows and Tegan Stockdale, who both made 22, pushed the Bucks’ total to 166/6 from their 20 overs.
Staffordshire’s reply began poorly when Lexie Cantrill and Lydia Perry were dismissed cheaply as they slumped to 23/2 in the 4th over, but that was as good as it got for Bucks. Megan Pittman and Ava Clive then added an unbeaten 148 to take Staffordshire to victory with 11 balls to spare. Pittman made 70* from 42 balls, which included nine 4’s and four 6’s; she was well supported by Clive, who made 75* from 52 balls with thirteen 4’s and two 6’s as they flayed the Bucks bowlers to all parts of the ground to secure the points for Staffordshire.
Match 2.
Staffordshire won by 7 wickets.
Staffordshire again won the toss and elected to field. Early wickets from Lucy Shenton and Anusha Chauhan reduced Bucks to 21/2 in the 5th over as Staffordshire made an excellent start. When Chauhan had Amelie Bishop stumped by Helen Hughes, their good start continued as Bucks fell to 40/3 in the 7th over. Tilly Fellows then made an explosive 84* from just 40 balls as she smashed eight 4’s and five 6’s as she really put the Staffordshire bowlers to the sword. She was supported by Duggan, who made a run-a-ball 37, which included four 4’s and a 6. Chauhan was the pick of the Staffordshire bowlers as she finished with figures of 3/35 from her 4 overs, but she could not prevent Bucks closing on 171/7 from their 20 overs.
Lexie Cantrill then unleashed a vicious assault on the Bucks’ bowlers. She dominated an opening partnership of 41 with Emily Hughes, who made only 7 before she was dismissed in the 5th over. Cantrill went to 50 from just 25 balls, smashing nine 4’s and two 6’s along the way. She found a partner in the reliable Pittman, and they began to hunt the large total down. They added 50 for the 2nd wicket in just 22 deliveries in a remarkable spell of hitting. Staffordshire raced to 100 in the 10th over as the partnership began to grow rapidly. The 100 partnership came up in 47 balls, with no respite for the Bucks bowlers; they just could not break the partnership or slow the scoring rate. Pittman went to her 2nd 50 of the day from 31 balls as her excellent form in this competition continues.
The partnership was broken when Amelie Bishop finally ended Cantrill’s stunning innings of 92. She struck twelve 4’s and five 6’s in the breathtaking display of hitting. With Pittman, she had added 125 for the 2nd wicket in only 59 balls and had made sure that Staffordshire would be taking the points back home with them. Pittman was then dismissed for a well-made 57 with only 1 run required for victory. It was left to Perry to strike the winning boundary and secure victory with a staggering 24 balls to spare.
It had been an excellent away day for Staffordshire, and their batters had definitely had fun in the sun. With four victories and two defeats, Staffordshire topped their group and now will advance to the next stage of the competition.
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