RHF Trophy wrap: Aussies start strong in first six rounds

Nicola Hancock, Charli Knott and Erin Burns have enjoyed a stellar start to the English domestic season with the first block of six 50-over matches done and dusted.

Six Australians have been among those in action in the opening rounds of the 50-over Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, and they'll be joined by Georgia Voll and Heather Graham as the T20 Charlotte Edwards Cup gets underway this weekend.

Nicola Hancock (Sunrisers)

14 wickets at 15.00, economy rate 4.2

Queenslander Hancock is the leading wicket-taker for the entire competition in the 50-over format so far this season at the start of the T20 break for the Charlotte Edwards Cup. Three-wicket hauls against Southern Vipers (3-45), Central Sparks (3-34), The Blaze (3-20) and Western Storm (3-15) have helped her Sunrisers to the top of the RHF Trophy standings with four wins from six games. Hancock's form has seen her extend her stay at the Sunrisers for the T20 season after initially only signing for the first six 50-over games.

Charli Knott (Southern Vipers)

259 runs at 51.80, strike rate 77.54

 

10 wickets at 24.60, economy rate 4.82

Another Queenslander in hot form, Knott is the Southern Vipers leading batter and bowler after the first six games of the season. Having opened her campaign with back-to-back two-wicket hauls and an unbeaten 58 in the second match, the 21-year-old hit a superb 112-ball 102 against Western Storm earlier this month – her maiden century at List A or T20 level. She followed it up with 3-35 in their next match against the Sunrisers, the team her Vipers sit one point behind in second place in the standings.

Amanda-Jade Wellington (Western Storm)

9 wickets at 26.44, economy 4.10

 

118 runs at 29.50, strike rate 128.26

The South Australian leggie is never too far away from the action, with several meaningful lower-order contributions to go with her 3-20 against Northern Diamonds and two-wicket hauls against The Blaze and Thunder. Wellington has teamed up with 19-year-old left-arm finger spinner Sophia Smale, with the pair occupying the top two spots on the Storm's wicket-taking tally this season.

Courtney Webb (Central Sparks)

83 runs at 27.66, strike rate 79.04

Fellow South Australian Webb found her groove in her last match before the T20 break with 40 off 35 balls against the Thunder after starting with scores of 28 and 15 since joining the Sparks at the start of May. The 24-year-old joins former Melbourne Renegades teammate Eve Jones at the Sparks, with the pair sharing 72-run fourth-wicket stand against the Thunder as Jones finished unbeaten on 136 as they reached their target of 285 with two balls to spare.

Katie Mack (Thunder)

227 runs at 37.83, strike rate 87.98

Mack carried her form from the WNCL – where she was last season's third top run-scorer – with her to England, starting the campaign with an even 100 in her second match against the Sunrisers to help her side to a convincing 142-run win. She's reached at least 28 in three of her four innings since, but will be hoping for more scores of substance when she links back up with the Thunder in August for the final four games of the 50-over season.

Erin Burns (Northern Diamonds)

125 runs at 25.00, strike rate 88.02

 

11 wickets at 22.54, economy rate 4.13

Spinners are all the rage in the RHF Trophy so far this season, occupying seven of the top 10 wicket-taking spots. Burns is one of those, her 11 scalps putting level with Kirstie Gordon and Hannah Baker as the leading slow bowlers. The veteran off-spinning allrounder's best return was 3-40 from 10 overs in a narrow two-wicket loss to The Blaze. She's yet to fully fire with the bat, but with scores of 49 and a run-a-ball 45 in her five innings so far, there plenty to build on heading into the T20 tournament.

Yet to play

Heather Graham (The Blaze) – The Tasmanian allrounder is set to join The Blaze in June for the final five group games of the 20-over Charlotte Edwards Cup, followed by four 50-over Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy matches before The Hundred begins, where she will play for Trent Rockets.

Georgia Voll (Thunder) – Voll begins her stint with the Thunder this weekend with the Queenslander having signed on for the full Charlotte Edwards Cup T20 campaign and four RHF Trophy matches in June and July.

2024 Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy standings

Team	Matches played M	Wins W	Losses L	Ties T	No results N/R	Net Run Rate NRR	Deductions Ded.	Batting Bonus Bat	Total points PTS
1 Northern Diamonds NOD	14	9	4	0	1	0.097	0	3	41
2 South East Stars SOU	14	9	5	0	0	0.246	0	4	40
3 Southern Vipers SOV	14	7	6	0	1	0.534	0	4	34
4 Sunrisers SUN	14	7	6	0	1	-0.122	0	4	34
5 The Blaze TBZ	14	7	6	0	1	-0.176	0	1	31
6 Thunder THN	14	5	8	0	1	-0.013	0	3	25
7 Central Sparks CEN	14	5	8	0	1	-0.299	0	3	25
8 Western Storm WST	14	4	10	0	0	-0.211	0	2	18

Legend

M: Matches played

W: Wins

L: Losses

T: Ties

N/R: No results

NRR: Net Run Rate

Ded.: Deductions

Bat: Batting Bonus

PTS: Total points