Round 12 of the One Day Cup - Last one before another break

With England involved in the T20 World Cup and England A in the middle of a low-key series with India A, many of the county sides have been struggling to field full-strength teams. The positive spin is that it gives some the Academy members the chance to make their first team debut. The negative is that some games are less than competitive. 
In this sandwich filler section Surrey were surprisingly the big losers. They only played two games, but lost to both The Blaze and to Durham. They have slipped to fifth in the table, but are only 2 points off the play-off places. 
Two wins for Durham have taken them to the dizzying heights of third, behind The Blaze and Hampshire. 
Essex lost all three of the games they played in this segment of the competition and are rooted to the bottom of the league, but, with five games still to play even they are not out of possible contention for the play-offs, although you'd have to say it looks a pretty distinct possibility. 
Any team that can get on a roll in August and September can make the play-offs. The England v Ireland series could interfere in team selection in that period, but most teams should be back to full strength, subject to post-Hundred injuries and resting players. 

Current table

Here is what happened in Round 12.....

The Blaze v Yorkshire
Yorkshire 150 ao lost to The Blaze 151/6 by 4 wickets
Choosing to bat did not work out too well for Yorkshire who struggled along for nearly 43 overs to put just 150 runs on the board. Only four Yorkshire batters made it into double figures and Sarah Glenn was the top scorer with 30. Charley Phillips added another 3 wickets to her season tally.
The Blaze shot out of the gates in search of the bonus point win, and were 59/3 at the end of the powerplay. Stand-in skipper Marie Kelly held them together with 66 and they got over the line 6 down in the 31st over for a short, sharp day.

Durham v Surrey
Surrey 179 ao lost to Durham 183/4 by 6 wickets
A somewhat depleted Surrey batting line-up - missing Capsey, Wyatt-Hodge, Dunkley, and Chatli - crashed and burned to the spin of  Katie Levick (4/31) and Mady Villiers (3/23). Bowled out in under 40 overs for just 179 Surrey might have felt they had a chance as they reduced Durham to 81/4, but skipper Hollie Armitage (76*) and Aussie Heather Graham (40*) completed an unbeaten century stand to claim the bonus point win.

Lancashire v Essex 
Lancashire 272/9 beat Essex 119 ao by 153 runs
Lancashire's top eight batters all made it to double figures as Lancs piled on the runs against an Essex team deprived of skipper Grace Scrivens , Jodie Grewcock and Sophia Smale, on England A duties. The writing was on the wall pretty early into the Essex innings as they struggled to 43/3 in the powerplay. Saffer Anika Bosch delayed the inevitable for a while top scoring with 32, but even she could not resist the off-spin of Fi Morris as one after another five batters holed out. Morris finished with career best figures of 6/27. She will bowl a lot better and get far less by way of reward.

Hampshire v Warwickshire
Hampshire 265/7 beat Warwickshire 194ao by 71 runs
Hampshire built their way slowly and steadily to 265 based around a fine knock from keeper Rhianna Southby (90*) and 64 from Abi Norgrove. Amanda Jade Wellington added a bit of oomphed at the end of the innings with a run a ball 42 as they players melted in the 35 degree temperatures at the Utilita Bowl. 
Warwickshire looked out of it at 40/3, including the wicket of the returning Davina Perrin (16), but Georgia Redmayne (53) and Abbey Freeborn (54) seemed to have Warwickshire back on track before the late introduction of Wellington lead to Redmayne's downfall with 128 on the board. From there there was a steady procession of batters to and from the wicket with Georgia Adams claiming 3/30, including the important wicket of Freeborn with an instinctively one-handed return catch. A win that looked in doubt at one stage ended up being a 5 point bonus win, keeping Hampshire in second spot, albeit 9 points behind The Blaze.

Martin Davies
25/VI/2026

Round 11 of the One Day Cup - Collapses, Shocks & Big Wins

On the morning after the night before for Nat Sciver- Brunt's calf, and with England's male football players apparently getting ready for some competition or other, the ladies what cricket were at it again in the One Day Cup.
Bottom-dwellers Lancashire toppled the table-toppers The Blaze; Hampshire annihilated Essex, Somerset produced the 40 balls of the season and Yorkshire took the spoils in the Northern derby.

Here is how the games worked out......

Durham v Yorkshire
Durham 193 ao lost to Yorkshire 194/4 by 6 wickets
Durham only made it to a lowly 193 courtesy of a tenth wicket partnership of 62 between Trudy Johnson (32*) and Katie Levick (31). It never looked like being enough runs once Lauren Winfield-Hill (65) and Erin Thomas (67) serenely took Yorkshire past 140 only one wicket down. Both perished thereafter, but Yorkshire stuck to the task to claim their third victory of the year and consign Durham to their fifth defeat.

Essex v Hampshire
Essex 245 lost to Hampshire 246/0 by 10 wickets
Hampshire may have been disappointed to have allowed Essex to post 245, having been 112/6, but Essex's recovery showed how good the wicket really was. Number 8 Liberty Heap hit an aggressive 75 and Jo Gardner 56.
Hampshire need not have worried as openers Maia Bouchier (136*) and Ella McCaughan (104*) were rarely troubled, as Hampshire cruised to a 10 wicket victory within 40 overs. The only doubt was whether McCaughan would join her opening partner in hitting a 100, but, with passive assistance from Bouchier, she scored 18 of the last 19 runs required to win to post her own century.

Lancashire v The Blaze
Lancashire 239 ao beat The Blaze 211 ao by 28 runs
The Blaze at 159/4 looked to have their ninth victory nicely sown up, with Tammy Beaumont (64) and Prisha Thanawala (39) apparently in full control of the chase. Lancs had made hard work of setting 239 in the first place with the top 8 all making double figures, but only Seren Smale (51) and Fi Morris (57) going on beyond 50.
But suddenly Beaumont missed a straight ball from Jones, Ella Claridge dragged a legside delivery onto her own stumps and Thanawala tamely holed out at mid-on. The Blaze, who have escaped some scrapes this season were in another one at 173/7. This time there was no saving the points for The Blaze as they were bowled out in the 48th over for a much-needed victory for a beleaugured Lancs team.

Somerset v Warwickshire
Warwickshire 160 ao lost to Somerset 161/3 by 7 wickets
I don't think anyone saw the remarkable passage of play coming that took Warwickshire from a commanding 151/2 in the 27th over to 160 all out just 43 balls later. Openers Amu Surenkumar (58) and Georgia Redmayne (32) had laid the initial platform and Meg Austin (17) had helped take Warwickshire beyond 100, but when leg-spinner Lola Harris enticed Surenkumar to sweep the ball straight to Ellie Anderson at square leg Warwickshire's worst nightmares were about to become a reality.
Harris accounted for Pavely for a duck and left arm spinner Olivia Barnes bowled Katie George (31) with a peach; Freeborn was bowled by Harris; Taylor was run out by keeper Katie Jones' direct hit from 25 yards; Davis pulled Barnes to deep square; Stonehouse drove Harris to short cover and finally Baker dragged Barnes back onto her own stumps.
Lola Harris finished with 4/32 and Olivia Barnes 4/24.  
Shell-shocked Warwickshire did what they could with the ball, but Anika Learoyd's comfortable 70* guided Somerset to a victory that will live long in the memory.

Martin Davies
18/VI/2026

Round 10 - Clubs digging deep

With the T20 World Cup in full bling (sorry I mean swing), the 10th Round of the One Day Cup may have sneaked under the radar, and there are still two more rounds to be played in the next 10 days. With quite a few injuries to add to their list of woes clubs are being forced to dig deep to put out an XI.

Despite missing their Scottish contingent The Blaze racked up their eighth win consigning potential challengers Surrey to their fourth loss. Hampshire continued their title chase with a win over Somerset, which looked doubtful at one stage, and Warwickshire consigned the T20 form to the bin to hand Lancashire yet another beating. Durham came out best in their game with Essex.

Here is how the games panned out.....

Essex v Durham
Durham 291/9 beat Essex 245 ao by 46 runs
Once again Hollie Armitage (69 ) and Mady Villiers (76) combined to set Durham on the trail of a big score. They added 109 for the third wicket to take Durham to 199 with 15 overs still to come. But when both fell in quick succession Durham could have faded, but they continued to prosper eventually setting Essex 292 to win. 
Within 7 overs the game was effectively over - Scrivens, Grewcock and Smale gone and only 27 on the board. Flo Miller (56) and Sussex loanee, Nancy Harman (72), on debut for Essex did what they could to keep Essex in touch, but they were always behind the clock. Harman was last out in the 48th over.

Somerset v Hampshire
Hampshire 303/7 beat Somerset 264 ao by 39 runs
On a fine batting track at Taunton Hampshire were asked to set a total and they duly obliged. Their 303/7 was made up of double-figure contributions from all nine batters who came to the crease, which included scores in the 50s for Maia Bouchier, Rhianna Southby, and Francesca Sweet. Olivia Barnes claimed 3/54.
At 199/1 in the 33rd over Somerset needed another 104 off 17 overs at just over a run a ball. Aussie Anika Learoyd (87) and Bex Odgers (77) looked to have things under control, but within 4 overs the whole complexion of the game had changed as Somerset lost five wickets for just 14 runs. Spinners Adams (3/45) and Wellington (3/52) were the chief destroyers. The tail was left to try and hustle the required 91 runs still required and they came up well short, bowled out in the 47th over 

Surrey v The Blaze
Surrey 252/9 lost to The Blaze 253/5 by 5 wickets
Once again playing at Beckenham Surrey will have been disappointed to have posted only 252 against a World Cup weakened The Blaze. Their top five all got into double figures but no-one went on beyond 59 (Jemima Spence). Young slow left-armer Maria Andrews bowled her 10 overs and took 3/40, her lack of pace seeming to be Surrey's undoing. 
After a poor start, losing Beaumont to the 11th ball of the reply and overseas Knott in the 14th over, Georgia Elwiss (96) and Marie Kelly (69) took The Blaze two thirds of the way to their required total. Elwiss was still there as they levelled the scores before holing out at mid-on with victory, and a century, tantalisingly close.

Warwickshire v Lancashire
Warwickshire 314/7 beat Lancashire 294 ao by 20 runs
Warwickshire, still without Davina Perrin and Emily Arlott, piled on the runs against a dejected Lancashire attack. The returning Katie George helped herself to 127 and Meg Austin hit her first list A 100 (116). The pair added a mammoth 166 for the third wicket, with George only run out in the last over, by which time Warwickshire had sailed past 300.
Emma Lamb was back for Lancs and when she (40) and Eve Jones (113) added nearly a hundred for the first wicket, albeit in nearly 20 overs, Lancs probably felt they were in the game. But every time Lancs  thought they were making progress they lost a wicket. They needed 88 from the last 10 overs, but were six down. Despite a late flourish from Grace Potts (34) they ended 20 short with Charis Pavely taking 4/54. 

Martin Davies
15/VI/2026