London, Aug 23 (HS): Welsh Fire kept their playoff hopes intact in The Hundred 2025 after storming to a commanding eight-wicket victory over Birmingham Phoenix on Friday night.

With this result, both teams are now level on eight points each, with two matches still to play. However, the road to the knockouts remains tricky — wins in both remaining fixtures are essential, and they will still rely on third-placed Northern Superchargers dropping points. Also in the mix are Southern Brave (12 points) and Manchester Originals (8 points), making the qualification race even more intense.

Batting first, Birmingham Phoenix crumbled after a poor start. Ben Duckett fell early to Riley Meredith, and although Joe Clarke and Will Smeed tried to inject momentum, their dismissals left the innings wobbling. From 58/3, they slid to 85/5. A late stand of 39 runs between Benny Howell and Jacob Bethell offered some resistance, but the innings closed at a modest 138/9. Chris Green (3/27), Ben Kellaway (2/10), and Meredith (2/25) did the bulk of the damage.

Chasing 139, Welsh Fire made light work of the target. Steve Smith and Stephen Eskinazi added a brisk 72 for the opening wicket, with Eskinazi striking a fluent 42. Jonny Bairstow then provided fireworks with a rapid 35 off 21 balls, virtually sealing the game. Smith finished unbeaten on 47, while skipper Tom Abell struck the winning boundary as Fire reached 140/2 in 89 balls.

Result: Welsh Fire won by 8 wickets.

Brief Scores:

Birmingham Phoenix – 138/9 (100 balls) (Jacob Bethell 38, Joe Clarke 24; Chris Green 3/27, Ben Kellaway 2/10, Riley Meredith 2/25)

Welsh Fire – 140/2 (89 balls) (Steve Smith 47*, Stephen Eskinazi 42, Jonny Bairstow 35)

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar