Sophie Morris ne 29 runs ki shandaar innings kheli aur Hollie Armitage ne bhi apni taraf se koshish ki, par Surrey ki bowling, khaas kar Kalea Moore (2 wickets for 14 runs), ne Durham ko bada score banane se roka. Yeh score defend karna Durham ke liye mushkil tha, kyunki unke bowlers ko Surrey ke majboot batting lineup ka saamna karna tha.
Phir bhi, jab Surrey ne chase shuru kiya, toh unka confidence dekhne layak tha. Captain Bryony Smith aur Danni Wyatt-Hodge ne shuruaat mein hi Durham ke bowlers par hamla bol diya. Bryony ne Grace Johnson ke overs mein do chauke maare, jabki Wyatt-Hodge ne Sophie Morris ke spin ke khilaaf deep midwicket par shandaar shots khele. Ek waqt par, 20 balls ke powerplay ke baad, Surrey 34 for 0 thi, aur aisa lag raha tha jaise woh match ekdam apni muththi mein le lenge. Wyatt-Hodge ne apni aggressive batting jari rakhi aur 26 balls mein 50 runs thok diye, jo ek shandaar performance thi. Yeh yaad dilata hai 2019 ke uss match ka jab Lizelle Lee ne Surrey Stars ke liye Lancashire Thunder ke khilaaf 17 balls mein fifty banayi thi, jo T20 Blast ke itihas mein teesri sabse tezi se banayi gayi half-century hai.
Surrey ki yeh jeet unki teesri seedhi jeet thi, jo unke iss tournament mein shandaar shuruaat ko darshata hai. Wyatt-Hodge aur Smith ki opening partnership ne match ko Durham ke haathon se cheen liya. Yeh performance uss tarah ki thi jaise 2025 ke shuruaat mein Hampshire ke Ella McCaughan ne tournament mein teen half-centuries banayi thi, jisse Hampshire ne bhi apni shuruaat mein do jeet haasil ki. Surrey ki team ka yeh aggressive andaaz unke fans ke liye ek bada jashn ka mauka tha, kyunki barish ke bawajood, jab match ruk gaya tab Surrey 62 for 4 par thi, jo DLS method ke hisaab se target se aage tha. Yeh pal yaad dilata hai jab 2025 mein hi Durham ne Nottinghamshire ke khilaaf ek dramatic jeet haasil ki thi, jab unhone 91 runs ka target aakhiri 10 balls mein chase kiya.
Lekin yahan ek chhoti si kami bhi nazar aayi. Surrey ki team ne bhale hi yeh match jeet liya, par unke middle order mein thodi kamzori dikhi. Jab Wyatt-Hodge 25 runs par out hui aur team 46 for 3 par thi, tab aisa laga jaise Durham wapas match mein aa sakti hai. Yeh waqt thoda sa chintajanak tha, kyunki agar barish na aati toh shayad match ka result kuch aur hota. Aise mein, Surrey ko apne middle order ko aur majboot karna hoga, kyunki aage jaake bade tournaments mein aisi chhoti galtiyan bhaari pad sakti hain, jaise 2025 ke One-Day Cup mein Surrey aur The Blaze ka match tie ho gaya tha, jab unke paas jeet ka mauka tha par woh usse chook gaye.
