Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) star all-rounder Andre Russell displayed his exemplary pinch-hitting skills to partner with Jos Buttler and help Manchester Manchester Originals to a victory over Southern Brave in The Hundred on Thursday, August 18. Buttler and Russell both hit over 60 runs apiece as the Originals' commanding first innings set an unassailable total for the Brave.
The duo put on a 51-run partnership of just 24 balls before Buttler was dismissed by Michael Hogan for 68 runs off 42 balls. His innings included three fours and five sixes, and England's white-ball skipper smashed the ball at a rate of 161.90. But the real hero on the night was the West Indies Andre Russell, whose 23 ball-64 helped his team to an unassailable target of 188 runs and lost just three wickets.
Russell smacked 11 boundaries and displayed his true ball-hitting prowess in the tail end of their innings as the Originals demolished the previous best team score in the Men's Hundred at the Ageas Bowl, recording the fourth-highest men's score in the entire competition.
And this is not the only contribution that Russell did for his team during their match. Their opponents were bowled out for 120 runs, led by Paul Walter, who claimed a hat-trick of wickets. Tristan Stubbs and Matt Parkinson took a pair each. Russell also bagged a wicket, dismissing the dangerous but out-of-form Tim David.
Openers for the Brave, Quinton De Kock, and James Vince started well with a quick 36 runs off 17 balls before Sean Abbott dismissed Vince with a stunning one-handed return catch. Then, Marcus Stoinis came to the crease but did not last long in his final outing for the Brave, sweeping straight to square-leg off Tom Hartley.
Tristan Stubbs dismissed Alex Davies and claimed the key wicket of De Kock three balls later to effectively end the Brave's chances of an all-important history that might have saved their season. Defending champions Brave have just one win in their opening five matches of The Hundred, and their disappointing home defeat to the Originals all but ends their chances of securing the title for a second consecutive season.
