Heather Graham kept her cool when it mattered most, smacking the winning runs off the last ball to clinch a nail-biting victory for Welsh Fire over Southern Brave at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff. The knock sealed Fire's second win of the women's Hundred season and handed the previously unbeaten Brave their first defeat.
Fans at the ground in Cardiff were on the edge of their seats as Fire chased down Brave's target of 122, losing wickets at key moments throughout their innings. Brave had stormed to five straight wins to start the competition, but Graham was not about to let them complete a perfect six from six.
The drama started early when 18-year-old left-arm spinner Tilly Corteen-Coleman tore through Fire's top order, removing both openers in the same set of balls before also dismissing Freya Kemp. She finished with impressive figures of three wickets for 27 runs. Fire's captain for the day, Georgia Wareham, then fell to a clever slower ball from Lauren Bell, leaving the hosts struggling at 70 for five wickets.
It looked like Brave would cruise to victory, but Graham had other plans. She found willing partners in Grace Thompson and Niamh Holland, who both chipped in with quick runs to keep the chase alive. When the final over arrived, Fire still needed six runs with just one wicket in hand. Graham held her nerve, scoring the winning runs to finish undefeated on 35 from just 28 deliveries.
Earlier, Brave had chosen to bat first after winning the toss — the first time any team had opted to bat in this season's women's competition. South African star Laura Wolvaardt nearly carried her bat through the innings, scoring 48 runs before being caught by Graham. She was just two runs short of a half-century. The innings got a boost from a 49-run partnership between Jemimah Rodrigues and Wolvaardt, though both fell at crucial moments as Brave's total of 121 for five proved insufficient.
The result moves Fire off the bottom of the standings while ending Brave's winning streak. It was a match that showed why cricket can be so thrilling — even with one wicket left and one ball to go, anything is possible.