- Most of the teams have played three games
- Surrey leading the way, along with Somerset and the Blaze
- Yorkshire Thunder and Warwickshire Bears Women winless
The Women’s Vitality Blast is well underway. Most teams have played three games, with only three teams playing only twice. Surrey Women, The Blaze and Somerset Women lead the way as the only unbeaten sides, with Warwickshire Bears Women and Lancashire Thunder still winless.
Opening night
Opening night saw eight of the nine sides play, with Durham Women not playing. The tightest game was between Somerset Women and Hampshire Hawks Women. Anika Learoyd top scored for Somerset batting first with 61* (49) and Rebecca Odgers scored 57 (38). Somerset set Hampshire 160 to win, and at 87-0 after 10 overs, Hampshire were on top.
However, this is where it went wrong for the Hawks. They went from 87-0 after 10 to 139-5 after 18.4 overs, thanks to some really tight bowling from Niamh Holland and Lola Harris. Holland took 4-21 and Harris took 1-26 in seven overs between them.At the fall of the fifth wicket, Hampshire required 21 to win off eight balls. However, they only managed to get 20 so the match was tied.
The other games weren’t as tight. The Blaze (181-6) beat Yorkshire Women (179-5) by four wickets, Surrey Women (191-4) beat Lancashire Thunder (185-7) by six wickets and Essex Women (166-3) beat Warwickshire Bears Women (164-8) by seven wickets.
Night two
The closest game of the night also involved Hampshire Hawks Women, this time against Durham Women. Durham Women batted first and captain Hollie Armitage top scored with 64 (49). Emily Windsor also scored 35 (26) as Durham Women amassed 178-5. Hampshire’s run chase never got going and they ended up on 146-8, losing by 32 runs. Rhianna Southby (33* off 21) and Naomi Dattani (33 off 21) top scored.
In the other two games, Somerset Women (167-3) beat Warwickshire Bears Women (166-9) by seven wickets, and Surrey Women (134-6) beat Yorkshire Women (133 ao) by four wickets.
Second week
There was a tense finish at the Oval as Surrey Women picked up their third win. Bess Heath top scored with 28 (25) as Durham Women were bowled out for a mere 102, thanks to some sublime bowling. Bethan Miles picked up 2-10 in just two overs, however it was Ryana MacDonald-Gay who stole the show. She took 6-11 in her four overs, being on a hat-trick three times.
However, despite the low total, Surrey were made to work for it. Wickets kept falling throughout the innings, with Jemima Spence top scoring with 24 (17). Alice Monaghan (20 off 10) saw them over the line to win by 2 wickets, with plenty of balls left. Lauren Filer, released by England to play in this game, took 2-30, but it was Heather Graham who had the best figures. She took 3-19 in her four overs.
In the other games, Somerset Women (177-5) beat Yorkshire Women (138-9) by 39 runs, The Blaze (159-6) beat Warwickshire Bears Women (158-8) by four wickets, Hampshire Hawks Women (160-7) beat Essex Women (137-9) by 23 runs. The Blaze (163-7) also beat Lancashire Thunder (162-5) by three wickets on Monday evening (25th May).
Table so far
| Team | Pld | Won | Lost | Tied | NRR | Pts |
| Surrey Women | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1.392 | 13 |
| The Blaze | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +0.306 | 12 |
| Somerset Women | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | +0.906 | 11 |
| Hampshire Hawks Women | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -0.150 | 6 |
| Essex Women | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | +0.725 | 5 |
| Durham Women | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | +0.209 | 4 |
| Lancashire Thunder | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | -0.560 | 0 |
| Warwickshire Bears Women | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | -1.328 | 0 |
| Yorkshire Women | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | -1.445 | 0 |
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