The Hundred: Which teams are still in the hunt for place in final?

It’s crunch time in the 2023 edition of The Hundred, with playoff places to be won and lost in the men’s and women’s competition as the group stage concludes this week ahead of Sunday’s final…

Who has qualified for the final already?

Oval Invincibles’ handy five-wicket win over Trent Rockets in their final group game on Monday night – Sam Billings smashing a superb, unbeaten 76 from 40 balls – has not only assured them of a place in Sunday’s men’s final but has also all but dumped the holders out of the tournament.

Invincibles now can’t be caught at the top of the table, boasting six wins and 13 points from their eight games, with Manchester Originals’ haul of nine next best in second.

Rockets, meanwhile, do still occupy one of the top three positions in the table but are precariously placed, needing a bunch of results to go their way over the final few games – with four teams still capable of leapfrogging them and earning their place in Saturday’s eliminator.

In the women’s tournament, we already know our top three – Southern Brave, Welsh Fire and Northern Superchargers – but we don’t yet know which order they’ll finish in and therefore who goes straight through to Sunday’s final and who is left to slug it out on Saturday for the right to join them.

Whatever happens, we’ll have a new name on the trophy, with two-time reigning champions Invincibles already out despite ending their tournament with a dramatic three-run win over Rockets on Monday.

Can Brave be toppled in women’s tournament?

Brave have been bested by Invincibles in both those previous women’s finals and are once again proving models of consistency by sitting top of the table with one game to go after six wins in seven.

They can, however, yet be pipped to the post by Fire or Superchargers, who meet in a must-watch clash on Tuesday – live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event from 2.30pm (first ball, 3pm).

Fire, who finished bottom of the table in both previous editions of The Hundred, have enjoyed quite the turnaround in 2023, riding on the coattails of captain and tournament leading-scorer, England’s Tammy Beaumont, who struck the first-ever hundred in the women’s competition in their win over Rockets.

A Fire win (or tie) against Superchargers would see them jump up to top spot and pile the pressure on Brave to win their final game against Originals on Wednesday – live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event from 2.30pm (first ball, 3pm) – in order to ensure their progress through to the final.

If Superchargers were to be victorious over Fire, they too would likely claim top spot, but they’d only join Brave level on points and so would need Originals to do them a favour on Wednesday.

The two teams which finish second and third in the table will face off in Saturday’s eliminator to determine who joins the table-toppers in Sunday’s final.

Eliminator spots up for grabs in men’s comp

It’s all a smidge more complicated in the men’s competition when determining which teams will make up that eliminator match-up.

Originals are in the driving seat, in second place on nine points, two clear of most of the chasing pack and with a vastly superior net run-rate. A win on Wednesday against Brave – live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event from 6pm (first ball, 6.30pm) – would guarantee an eliminator spot. Even with defeat, they might sneak through should other results go their way.

Victory for Fire, who failed to win a single game last season, over Superchargers on Tuesday – live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event from 6pm (first ball, 6.30pm) – would see them join Originals on nine points and in with a shout of qualifying for the next stage.

Superchargers’ hopes are much slimmer. Currently on five points and with the worst net run-rate of all the hopefuls, even a handsome win over Fire would not guarantee they leapfrog Rockets into that third qualifying spot.

But whichever of Superchargers and Fire ultimately win, they’ll be cheering on Originals on Wednesday, as a win instead for 2021 winners Brave – among the pack currently on seven points – would see them jump ahead of either team and into the eliminator.

As for Thursday’s final game of the group stage, London Spirit versus the already-eliminated Birmingham Phoenix – live on Sky Sports Cricket and Main Event from 6pm (first ball, 6.30pm) – the only way Spirit can still qualify is if Superchargers and Originals both win their respective games.

That would create a scenario in which Originals would be guaranteed an eliminator berth, but Spirit – currently on six points – could jump ahead of the contingent on seven with a win over Phoenix. A win for either Fire or Brave would, however, scupper those hopes.

What else is there still to play for?

If that’s not enough for you already, the women’s clash between Fire and Superchargers on Tuesday is definitely one to watch out for as it could prove to be a dress rehearsal for a further meeting in the eliminator, or perhaps even the final.

Could one team earn a sizeable psychological advantage with a handy victory over the other, or will there be any individual players to lay down a marker ahead of the weekend’s finale?

As you can see above, there are plenty of playoff implications already riding on the remaining matches in the men’s competition. Although, there is one more position still to be determined, winners of the wooden spoon!

Winless Phoenix are already assured of that ‘honour’ in the women’s tournament, but the men’s team can avoid the same fate, so long as Superchargers lose to Fire on Tuesday and they beat Spirit in their final game on Thursday.

Were Superchargers to win their game, then Phoenix can still avoid finishing bottom but only by hammering Spirit in their final game to hopefully best their net run-rate as they join them level on six points.

Beaumont (253 runs) and Brave spinner Georgia Adams (15 wickets) are currently the women’s tournament leaders on an individual basis, with England white-ball captain, and Originals skipper, Jos Buttler (253 runs), and Superchargers left-arm pace bowler Reece Topley (13 wickets) the best of the bunch among the men. But could that all change over the final few days?

What’s next?

There’s another Hundred double-header live on Sky Sports on Tuesday as Northern Superchargers host Welsh Fire, with the women’s teams first clashing at 3pm before the men meet at 6.30pm.

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