All-round Matthew Short helps Welsh Fire ease past Southern Brave

CARDIFF: Matthew Short backed his bowling figures of 2/13 with an unbeaten half-century and propelled Welsh Fire to a comfortable six-wicket victory over Southern Brave in the 19th match of The Hundred men's competition here at the Sophia Gardens on Monday.

Fire captain Phil Salt's decision to field first paid dividends as the home side's bowling unit curtailed the Brave for a modest total of 115/8 despite Marcus Stoinis's half-century.

The Australian all-rounder waged a lone battle for the Brave with an anchoring 55 off 39 deliveries, comprising eight fours and a six, and remained their top-scorer, while David Miller (21) and Nikhil Chaudhary (18) were the others to amass double figures.

Sam Cook spearheaded the Fire's bowling charge with three wickets for just 14 runs in his quota of 20 deliveries, followed by Rachin Ravindra and Short with two each, while Chris Woakes chipped in with one scalp.

In response, the hosts made light work of the 116-run target as they chased it down for the loss of four wickets and five balls to spare, courtesy of Short's half-century.

The right-handed opener oversaw the Fire's successful pursuit with an unbeaten 60 off 41 deliveries, studded with six fours and two sixes. His all-round exploits earned him the Player of the Match award.

He was involved in two crucial partnerships with veteran Joe Root and middle-order batter Tom Kohler-Cadmore, who made 17 and 23 not out, respectively.

Jofra Archer was the standout bowler for the Brave as he picked up two wickets for 19 runs in his 20 deliveries, while Chris Jordan and Adil Rashid could claim one apiece.

The six-wicket victory bolstered Welsh Fire's points tally to 12 in five matches and lifted them to the second position in The Hundred standings, only behind leaders Trent Rockets due to an inferior net run rate, while Southern Brave remained fourth with eight points, having played a game more.