Georgia Adams slammed her highest Hundred score as Southern Brave bettered Oval Invincibles by seven wickets, ending the two-time champions’ reign.

Allrounder Adams took control of a faltering chase with an unbeaten 50 off 32 balls while Freya Kemp – unable to bowl this season due to a stress fracture in her back – scored 41 not out off 21.

Suzie Bates had scored 55 as Invincibles posted a creditable 130 but Adams and Kemp added 73 in 38 balls in front of another record crowd of 10,832 for a women’s match at the Ageas Bowl.

Brave had already booked their place in the knockouts but still have an automatic final spot in their grasp, while their nemesis in the first two finals can no longer progress.

Bowling first after losing the toss, Anya Shrubsole was shown a farewell video on the big screen ahead of her last Ageas Bowl appearance before retiring. She responded to the ovation by picking up Lauren Winfield-Hill’s wicket with her fifth ball, thanks to a stunning catch at mid-on by Maia Bouchier. The wicket slumped the Invincibles to 6 for 2 after Alice Capsey had already cross-batted Lauren Bell to midwicket.

But the early trouble was abated by Bates’ anchoring during stands of 53 and 63 with Marizanne Kapp and Paige Scholfield. The New Zealand veteran’s innings was guided through her control and ability to pick out the right balls to score off, without getting bogged down. To typify that approach, her fifty came off 40 balls.

Kapp played a similar role to get the visitors out of trouble but fell for 27 when picking out Chloe Tryon on the deep-square-leg boundary.

At 59 off the first 55 balls, the tempo needed to flick towards allegro and former Brave all-rounder Scholfield reset the metronome with 30 off 17 balls, which included getting dropped on 3 and plundering a six next ball.

Brave, often great at the death, once again flourished in the last end as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker Georgia Adams saw off Scholfield with her 15th wicket and Bates was run out for 55.
Nadine de Klerk slog-swept the penultimate ball to deep square leg with three wickets falling for 11 runs in the last ten balls.

A slow start and the loss of both openers within the first 26 balls put Brave’s chase on the back foot. Smriti Mandhana top-edged a swing across the line off Kapp and Danni Wyatt was bowled by de Klerk – the Charlotte Edwards Cup’s top wicket-taker on her first appearance since replacing Dane van Niekerk.

Bouchier and Adams put on 38 but the asking rate was rising after 17 balls without a boundary – caused by Kapp’s 1 for 18 – and the pressure saw Bouchier slap to cover.

Brave desperately needed a Scholfield-esque innings; Kemp provided it, with Adams upping her strike rate. The game swung on Mady Villiers being smashed for two sixes in three balls as the duo stepped things up with 42 off the last 16 balls to end the game – Kemp hoisting a maximum to do it in style with four balls to spare.