The Oval hosted the first-ever men’s match of cricket’s newest innovation, The Hundred tournament, between Oval Invincibles and Manchester Originals.
The Invincibles which included stars like Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Jason Roy, and Sam Billings won the match after scoring 145 runs in the allotted 100 balls. The team was struggling at 32/3 when skipper Sam Billings rescued his team with a 30-ball 49.
The Originals despite having players like Jos Buttler, Colin Munro, and Carlos Brathwaite fell short of the target by nine runs. Reflecting on the match and the initiative, Jos Buttler opined that more things will come to the fore as the inaugural edition of the ongoing Hundred competition goes on.
"As the tournament goes on, more things will unravel and we will see how the games pan out. I enjoyed the game. Great game, great atmosphere. I hope all the cities back their franchise in this competition. We had some injuries to deal with before putting up our XI. It certainly felt quicker. You have to make quick decisions as a captain with the change of bowlers. Great to see a lot of young guys in the stands," Jos Buttler stated after ending up on the losing side.
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Sam Billings who led his team to victory loved the atmosphere at The Oval. He said that the format was all about adaptability and his team did it better.
"Unbelievable atmosphere. It is one of the best grounds to play in the world, and it's nice to join the ladies up there with a win. The support was phenomenal, a few of the local lads were Surrey lads and they closed the game at the end. It was a bit slow and we saw a bit of spin at the end. It is all about adapting and thankfully we got enough tonight," Sam Billings stated after the win.
Billings, however, said that his team was about 15 runs short and praised spinner Sunil Narine who picked up a wicket giving away only 22 runs in his 20 balls.
"150-160 is par, but today on that kind of a pitch I thought we were close. Narine is a phenomenal man. He has done it all over the world and for a batsman coming in, it is really difficult,” he concluded.
(Inputs: Sportscafe)
