Rain frustrates Originals and Spirit after Buttler's fireworks
England captain hits 62 off 36 balls between showers in shortened match
ECB Reporters Network
05-Aug-2023
Jos Buttler teed off between rain showers • ECB/Getty Images
Manchester Originals 138 for 5 (Buttler 62) vs London Spirit - no result
Manchester Originals skipper Jos Buttler smacked five sixes in an entertaining 36-ball 62 but his side's match in the Hundred against London Spirit eventually fell victim to the Manchester weather.
The home side had reached 138 for 5 after 80 balls in the game's only innings when umpires Graham Lloyd and Steve O'Shaughnessy took the players from the field for the second time. They did not return and the no result outcome means that each side have taken one point from their first two matches in the Hundred.
The first interruption might have come at a useful time for Spirit's bowlers and fielders. The former had conceded five sixes in 35 balls, three of the maximums being struck by Phil Salt, who was dropped by Dan Lawrence off Liam Dawson when only 8. Salt was eventually caught by Adam Rossington for a nine-ball 21 when he thin-edged a pull off Dan Worrall.
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— The Hundred (@thehundred) August 5, 2023
@josbuttler striking the ball like this to reach his 50 #TheHundred pic.twitter.com/uLXbdkVdZz
However, Max Holden was dropped at by Jordan Thompson at long-on off Matt Critchley when on 2 and Buttler was unbeaten on 26 when a shower forced the players from the field.
That interruption reduced the match to a 90-balls per side affair at most with Spirit's target being calculated using Duckworth-Lewis-Stern. On the resumption, Holden and Buttler continued to make hay with Originals' skipper hitting three more sixes, two of them off successive balls from the legspinner, Critchley.
The Essex bowler soon had some consolation, though, when he had Holden stumped by Rossington for 23 and Spirit immediately had another boost when Laurie Evans was bowled for 1.
The introduction of Ravi Bopara's medium pace completed Spirit's fightback. Varying his pace intelligently, Bopara bowled Buttler with a slow yorker and had Paul Walter caught by Matthew Wade for 2.
Having seen their side lose four wickets in 16 balls, Ashton Turner and Jamie Overton attempted to rebuild the Originals' innings but their work was not completed when rain forced the players off for the final time. Bopara finished with 2 for 13 from his two sets of five.
"It's nice to get out there but it's a shame we couldn't get a full game in. But personally, it was a good day for me," Buttler said. "There was a lot of energy left in the changing room - the guys were desperate to get out there and play, but it is what it is and fingers crossed that it won't affect too much more of the competition.
"There's always a lot of anticipation in the build up to the Hundred. People are excited to get together in such a fun competition and in front of a really good crowd. I'm just disappointed for the boys - and the fans who don't get their money's worth and two full games today."
Meanwhile, at Edgbaston, Birmingham Phoenix's fixture against Trent Rockets was abandoned without a ball bowled after persistent rain.