Alice Davidson-Richards' half-century guides Northern Superchargers past Oval Invincibles

The England allrounder struck fifty off 32 balls as the hosts held their nerve to chase down Incinbles' 125 for 6 with five balls to go

ECB Media | 23/08/2025 at 13:54

Headingley: Oval Invincibles 125-6, Northern Superchargers 127-3 - Northern Superchargers won by seven wickets

Northern Superchargers solidified their position in the top three of the Women's Hundred with a comfortable win over a misfiring Oval Invincibles.

The visitors had their hopes of staging a late run to the knockout stages runined after a maiden tournament half-century for Alice Davidson-Richards and another brilliant cameo from Phoebe Litchfield.

A win here doesn't quite confirm the Superchargers' progression – London Spirit, in fourth, could yet haul them in – but the result does end the Invincibles' slim chances of featuring come the business end.

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^{Lauren Winfield-Hill moved herself down the order (ECB Media)}

The result will sting for Lauren Winfield-Hill's team, who scrapped hard but were always up against it once Tash Farrant was injured in the field; Tarrant was only able to bowl five deliveries, which meant that Winfield-Hill had to turn to spin.

With Farrant indisposed and her new-ball partner Marizanne Kapp forced to complete her 20 deliveries early, Litchfield and Davidson-Richards counter-attacked devastatingly, putting on 47 to take the game away from the visitors.

Davidson-Richards brought up her fifty with a slew of punches down the ground, hitting nine fours in all in her 32-ball stay, while Litchfield's range of shots, with the signature reverse-sweep once more in evidence, was breathtaking at times, her 21-ball 29 taking her into the top three of the competition's run-scorers.

Despite losing both batters in quick succession, the Australian pair of Annabel Sutherland and Nicola Carey steadied any nerves to see the Superchargers home with a full set still to bowl.

Invincibles, two-time winners of the competition, will be hurting. A garlanded line-up only sporadically clicked into top gear and even today, despite a sparky knock of 37 at No.5 from Winfield-Hill, their big guns were quiet, with their top four of Paige Scholfield, Meg Lanning, Alice Capsey and Kapp contributing just 39 runs between them, as Grace Ballinger and Kate Cross set the tone with excellent new-ball spells.