The Hundred Men’s 2022, Match 9 Review: Sam Curran leads chase as Oval Invincibles bagged thrilling win

The Oval Invincibles won the first game of the first doubleheader of The Hundred 2022 with just three balls to spare as they chased down the 158-run target set by the Northern Superchargers. Sam Curran’s 60 (39) and Jordan Cox’s 48 (29) proved to be crucial. Superchargers’ Adam Lyth reached his half-century off just 17 deliveries, the fastest of the tournament, but his knock went in vain as Invincibles’ middle-order clinched the win.

Jason Roy decided to bowl first at the Kia Oval in his first game as the Oval Invincibles’ captain. Lyth put the Invincibles under a lot of pressure by hitting four sixes in a row for the Superchargers as he got the Men in Purple to an electric start. The Yorkshireman quickly reached 53 off only 17 balls and sealed his historic half-century by slashing a boundary through the covers to backward point.

Top pacers in the team, Tom Curran and Reece Topley, also failed to restrict him from hitting. After skipper Faf du Plessis was out for nine off 10 deliveries and Michael Pepper was out for 16 off 19 balls, the Superchargers were at 86/2 just after the midway point thanks to Lyth’s largely solo batting effort.

Sunil Narine decreased Lyth’s momentum with his mystery spin before Matt Milnes got the better of him. For his final five balls, Narine returned to the attack and made an impact by dismissing Adam Hose and David Wiese in back-to-back deliveries. Wiese was out for a duck as the Superchargers battled to match Lyth’s performance. Roelof van der Merwe and Ben Raine finished the innings, with the latter hitting a humungous six to end it at 157/7.

The Curran brothers rescue the Invincibles

The Invincibles needed Jason Roy to make a big first-innings contribution, but it was not the performance he had desired, as he was out for a duck after only facing two balls off Ben Raine. The visitors turned to Craig Miles in their bowling attack because Matthew Potts was unavailable as he prepared for international duty, and he did not disappoint, dismissing Narine for a meagre score as things continued to worsen for the Invincibles.

After a review, Rilee Rossouw was struck out for just nine runs off of eight balls, and Bravo’s delivery pitched in line, bringing the score for the home team down to 21/3. Cox started the home team’s comeback, though, by hitting three boundaries in four balls. He, however, got run out just short of the half-century mark, leaving the game with 48 off 29 balls.

It was then Sam Curran who led the way like a lone warrior. He scored three sixes and eight fours to bring up his half-century and improve his team’s score. The Superchargers decided to bring Bravo back into the attack when 23 runs were needed from 15 balls, and he worked his magic and took the crucial wicket.

Tom Curran, the other brother, was next to contribute with some crucial runs. Tom hit two sixes in the span of two balls, cutting the Invincibles’ run requirement to just five from five, and a dropped catch by Du Plessis enabled them to score the final few runs and secure a decisive win with just three deliveries to spare.