Rebecca Stokell, Rachel Delaney help Typhoons win the Super50 competition

Typhoons won the Super50 competition on account of superior net run-rate after thumping Scorchers by seven wickets in Malahide on Sunday (September 27) in the final match and levelled the series 4-4. Fifties from Rebecca Stokell (67) and Rachel Delaney (64) headlined Typhoon’s chase after the collective efforts from the bowlers helped them restrict Scorchers to 235 for 6.



Chasing 236, Delaney put on a 48-run partnership for the opening wicket with wicket-keeper Sarah Forbes (10) before Leah Paul trapped Forbes in front of the wicket in the 12^th over. Stokell joined Delaney and both took advantage of the wayward bowling. Scorchers were guilty of bowling too full besides giving away runs with their poor fielding.



Delaney looked comfortable from the start and played some delightful shots including a straight drive four in the second over to kickstart her innings. She then peppered the off-side with drives through cover before square driving Sophia MacMahon in the 11^th over. She got to her fifty from 79 balls.



Once Delaney was dismissed, Stokell, in the company of skipper Laura Delany kept the chase on course with a flurry of boundaries. Stokell smashed a couple of boundaries in the leg-side before thumping Anna Kerrison over long-on for a six, while Delany preferred the off-side. Stokell eventually fell for an 83-ball 67 with Typhoons requiring 33 more runs to win. Delany remained unbeaten on 48 to take them home.



Earlier, opting to bat Scorchers recovered from 47 for 3 to post a competitive total of 235 for 6 from their 50 overs courtesy a 109-run partnership between Paul and Jenny Sparrow (59).



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Scorchers found it difficult to get going at the start against an in-form Orla Prendergast and Louise Little. First runs from the bat came in the fourth over as the openers tried to be cautious with Prendergast getting the ball to move. The tall right-arm pacer eventually got a reward for her efforts when she castled Gaby Lewis with an inswinger that came in sharply.



Scorchers were reduced to 47 for 3 in 18.4 overs when Caoimhe McCann was trapped in front by skipper Laura Delany for a duck after Cliodhna O’Reardon ran herself out on a free hit.



Paul tried to steady the ship with minimal risks even as runs were hard to come by. She put on 46 runs for the fifth wicket with MacMahon, with the latter doing the bulk of the scoring during their 53-ball partnership.



Sparrow provided the real impetus for the Scorchers’ innings coming into bat with the score reading 119 for 5 in the 36^th over. She started aggressively hitting Rebecca Gough for a four and a three but cleverly played out the final over of Prendergast before opening up again. Whenever Typhoons’ bowlers erred on length, she put them away on the leg-side. She reached her fifty with a single off Delany and smashed two more boundaries before getting run out in the 49^th over ending the 80-ball partnership.



Paul was happy to play second fiddle to Sparrow and ran hard between the wicket even in the later stages of the innings and her knock contained only four hits to the fence. She carried the bat through the innings to remain not out on a 124-ball 81. Prendergast finished with figures of 10-4-15-1.



Brief Scores: Scorchers 235 for 6 in 50 overs (Leah Paul 81*, Jenny Sparrow 59; Orla Prendergast 1/15, Celeste Raack 1/25) lost to Typhoons 239/3 in 41.5 overs (Rebecca Stokell 67, Rachel Delaney 64; Leah Paul 2/36) by seven wickets.