MATCH PREVIEW AND SQUAD NEWS: Lancashire Thunder vs Central Sparks, Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy 2024
Lancashire Thunder v The Blaze
Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy
Wednesday May 8, 2024, 10.30am
Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester
Thunder squad to face Central Sparks:
Ellie Threlkeld (c/wk), Olivia Bell, Danielle Collins, Kate Cross, Naomi Dattani, Mahika Gaur, Phoebe Graham, Hannah Jones, Emma Lamb, Katie Mack, Fi Morris, Tara Norris, Seren Smale
Lancashire Thunder opening batter Seren Smale believes she is reaping the rewards of a winter away in England colours.
Smale, 19, toured both India and New Zealand either side of Christmas with the England A squad and has returned to regional cricket with a bang over the last few weeks.
The North Wales product has posted scores of 32, 21, 9, 99 and 58 in five innings so far in the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy.
The 99 came against the best team in the country at present, champions Southern Vipers at Wormsley last week, and the 58 against the Blaze in yesterday’s thrilling one-wicket win at Trent Bridge. She top-scored in both 50-over fixtures.
Smale has contributed impressively to Thunder’s two wins from five outings so far and will hope to continue her good form when the side return to Emirates Old Trafford tomorrow to tackle Central Sparks (10.30am).
“I feel really comfortable this season,” said the player who also had a promising junior tennis career.
“I feel like I’m ready to score some runs.
“I worked really hard over the winter and been away with England A, which are new experiences, so I feel more mature.”
Smale, who has been opening the batting with Emma Lamb, has also gained high praise from new Thunder coach Chris Read, a man who knows exactly what it takes to perform at the top level.
“Seren’s had a fantastic start to the season,” he said.
“She also scored a hundred in a warm-up game at Edgbaston just before our first season proper.
“I think against Vipers, it was a mature innings and one where it felt a bit coming of age. She’s had that realisation that, ‘Oh yeah, I’m an emerging top level top order batter’.”
Having lost their two previous games, to Western Storm and then Vipers, just winning in any fashion against the Blaze would have given Thunder significant confident.
But the way they did it, by one wicket chasing 175 - and having had to recover from 161-9 - will have given the Red Rose mountains of belief ahead of the sixth and final game of this early-season block of RHFT fixtures.
After tomorrow, they break to play the Charlotte Edwards Cup T20 competition from next week through until late June.
“We saw some great fight and character by the two girls at the end to get us over the line.”
Those two girls were Hannah Jones and Phoebe Graham, who hit 10 and six respectively to seal the four points, sharing an unbroken partnership of 15.
Both players performed after recent on-field challenges.
Spinner Jones missed a large part of last season with a long-standing shoulder injury, while fast bowler Graham was out of favour last season and had to go on loan to Western Storm in search of some first-team cricket.
Jones has taken eight wickets in five games so far and Graham four in five.
While Thunder have won two from five, the Sparks have only won one from five this season and have ensured a challenging start - none more so than in their last game against the Northern Diamonds on Saturday when they lost by one run off the last ball at Edgbaston.
It was a game they had in the palm of their hands chasing 217. They were 112-1 in the 27th over and 201-5 in the 47th, only to go on and fail to get four runs off the last over with three wickets in hand.
Captain Eve Jones and her side badly need a pick-me-up.
Opening batter Jones is a former Lancashire women’s skipper, while Lloyd Tennant is their coach. He has been involved with the Manchester Originals women in the Hundred.
Sparks have signed Australian batter Courtney Webb as their overseas player.
Opposition player to watch
While current and former England all-rounders Issy Wong and Katie George are players who can hurt Thunder, for sure, we are going to take a look at emerging leg-spinner Hannah Baker.
The 20-year-old toured India and New Zealand this winter with England’s A squad - alongside the aforementioned Seren Smale.
She has taken nine wickets in five matches so far in this season’s RHF Trophy, including a superb 5-45 in defeat to South East Stars at Beckenham.
Baker certainly did not deserve to be on the losing side that day.
A product of Worcestershire’s set-up, she has taken 70 senior wickets in her career, including for the Pears.
If Thunder are to enjoy success tomorrow, they could do with keeping Baker quiet.
Previous meeting
The two regions played out a thrilling tie at Emirates Old Trafford last season, almost exactly 12 months ago. But, unfortunately, the Sparks won the return fixture at New Road in early July.
Ami Campbell hit 68 and Abbey Freeborn 67 in the Sparks’ 233 all out in exactly 50 overs after they had been inserted.
Tara Norris was excellent for Thunder. She took the new ball and returned 4-42 from nine overs.
Seren Smale opened up with a superb 94 off 125 balls - the innings of the fixture - but unfortunately her departure came at a key time in the chase and Thunder fell 30 runs short of their target, losing by 29.
Thunder had been well placed at 160-4 in the 38th over with herself and Danielle Collins (22) set. But both fell in successive overs, Smale to three-wicket seamer Katie George, and the innings subsided to 204 all out in the 49th over.