Southern Brave duo reflect on The Hundred performances so far after thrilling finishes at Utilita Bowl
Southern Brave’s two sides have had opposite starts to their respective Hundred campaigns, with the women securing three wins from three while the men have suffered defeat in all their fixtures so far.
This trend was emphasised in the double header fixture against MI London on Monday, with both matches going down to the final ball but the flip of a coin outcome falling differently for the two Brave sides. Speaking to BBC Radio Solent the next day, Jodi Grewcock reflected on the women’s start to the tournament.
“We probably haven’t even put in our best performances," she said. "Being able to get over the line in really close games has been great and probably brought us closer together, but we’re still waiting to put in a complete performance.
“[The final ball] was pretty tense. We got to a point in the game where I thought we was still in it, and there was a lot of belief within the group that we could go all the way and get over the line. We saw some brilliant bowling at the death there and a calm head did just that.”
Furthering the feeling that the two sides are having polar opposite experiences so far, men’s batter, Ben McKinney, added:
“It’s a strange one because we've been we've lost three, but we've also been in the position to win all three. Usually, when you get beat, you get beat convincingly so it’s a positive and negative at the same time. We’re just hoping that we can string a performance together with the bat and the ball in the same game and put a show on for the fans.
“It makes it simple for us now though in this tournament. It's in our hands to go and win five out of five and that’s what we need to do now.”
Grewcock also discussed the tournament more widely, which has become a staple in the English cricket calendar, and how the experience is helping her develop.
“I love The Hundred. I think it's really positive for the women's game and nice for us to experience playing in front of big crowds and getting to play with different players and overseas players. It's been good this year with a mix up within the teams. It's nice to play with different players to before and it's just another opportunity to go out and play in front of fans.
“I’ve learned plenty [from playing with experienced players]. All of our overseas and obviously England players have been great. I think even sometimes just little conversations here and there, whether it's over breakfast or a coffee, can be really valuable.”
Next up is another double header for the two Southern Brave sides, who will once again step out in front of a packed Utilita Bowl on Thursday 30 July when they face Birmingham Phoenix.