Match Report: Essex Women v Hampshire Hawks Women

Maia Bouchier blazed 87 from 55 balls, the highest score of this year’s Vitality Blast, before Amanda-Jade Wellington claimed a hat-trick to maintain Hampshire Hawks’ rise up the table with a resounding win over Essex.

Opener Bouchier – who featured in England’s recent T20I series against New Zealand but was left out of their World Cup squad – hit two sixes and eight fours as she batted almost right through the visitors’ total of 155 for four at Chelmsford.

Hampshire’s spinners then got to work, with skipper Georgia Adams’ four overs bringing her three for 18 before Wellington dismissed Jodi Grewcock, Flo Miller and Sophia Smale in consecutive deliveries to effectively end the contest.

The Australian leg-spinner finished with five for 18, her best haul of the tournament so far, as Essex stumbled to 100 for nine.Put in under heavy clouds, the Hawks struggled to get the ball away during their first three powerplay overs and scored only 11, as well as losing Ella McCaughan, who skied Sophie Munro to point.

However, Bouchier – who had only faced two balls until then – made up for lost time as she clattered Kate Coppack’s next over for 17 and dispatched Munro for successive boundaries to provide the innings with impetus.

She and Adams added 58 from 42 and, although the captain missed a straight one from her opposite number Grace Scrivens, Francesca Sweet (35 from 30) seized the baton with a series of back-foot punches to the fence.

Bouchier’s reverse paddle off Coppack flew for six to bring up the 50 partnership and that was extended by another 20 until Sweet’s wicket brought Smale (one for 22) some reward for her tidy spell.

Hampshire’s score was already beyond 150 by the time a neat piece of glovework by Amara Carr off Scrivens (two for 33) dislodged Bouchier in the final over of the innings – and the home side were soon in trouble at the start of their reply.

Adams’ off-breaks brought the Hawks two wickets in an over as she returned the favour to Scrivens, who was lured out of her crease and stumped before Liberty Heap popped up a routine leg-side catch.

With Lissy MacLeod miscuing Adams to midwicket, Essex reached 27 for three at the end of the powerplay and, while Grewcock and Jo Gardner battled to stabilise the innings, a dearth of boundaries pushed them further behind the required rate.

Leg-spinner Wellington then ended Essex’s hopes in the 14th over, having Grewcock (30 from 34) stumped before Miller feathered one behind and Smale was castled by the hat-trick ball, which pitched and turned to hit middle stump.

Wellington completed her five-wicket haul by removing Gardner and Eva Gray and left-arm spinner Bex Tyson’s economical effort of one for 12 was somewhat overshadowed as the Hawks closed out a comfortable victory.