Unbeaten 67-run stand with Marizanne Kapp takes charge of run chase after hosts’ 125 for 4

ECB Media06-Aug-2024Oval Invincibles returned to winning ways with a comfortable seven-wicket win over Manchester Originals in the Women’s Hundred at Emirates Old Trafford.An unbeaten 67-run stand between Paige Scholfield and Marizanne Kapp from 37 balls took charge of the run chase after the hosts managed 125 for 4. In-form Scholfield crashed 48 from 27 balls after opener Chamari Athapaththu laid the foundation with 33 from 36 balls.Invincibles were equally as impressive in the field, highlighted by a host of sharp catches, with Aussie leg-spinner Amanda-Jade Wellington the pick of the bowlers with 2 for 22.Both teams were looking to bounce back after disappointing results on Sunday. The Originals lost to cross-Pennines rivals Northern Superchargers, while Invincibles arguably let one slip in their derby draw with London Spirit to mark a rare two-game winless run, Tuesday’s result putting the Oval outfit in second place on the points table.After a slow start, which saw the Originals manage 25 without loss after the powerplay, openers Laura Wolvaardt and Beth Mooney found the rope seven times in 15 balls.Mooney, the No. 2 draft pick, was just getting going when Seren Smale held a sharp chance at short third off Ryana MacDonald-Gay, who snapped up an even better catch at mid-on moments later to remove the competition’s second-highest runscorer Woolvardt.Originals started to slow, they went 34 balls without a boundary, before skipper Sophie Ecclestone added some much-needed late power to finish unbeaten on 26 from 15 balls.Invincibles set about proving that was not nearly enough on a good pitch with Sri Lanka star Athapaththu and captain Lauren Winfield-Hill adding 48 for the first wicket.Alice Monaghan removed Winfield-Hill and Alice Capsey in quick succession and when Athapaththu was lbw to Kathryn Bryce there was work to do at 60 for 3.Scholfield ensured any nerves were short-lived though as she found the rope on seven occasions, while Kapp added 19 from 11 to power the Invincibles home with seven balls to spare.Meerkat Match Hero Scholfield said: “I really enjoyed it. We’ve had a couple of tough games in a row. You learn more from losing than winning and we went away and studied what was going on and I think we were more disciplined today.”We just spoke about nudging her (Sophie Ecclestone) around and getting rotation of strike going and then going after the other bowlers.”