Birmingham Phoenix secured a five-wicket win at Sophia Gardens, ending Welsh Fire's hopes of reaching The Hundred Eliminator and moving up to third in the table. Moeen Ali and Ben Duckett made classy half-centuries, with Moeen hitting eight fours and a six in his 46-ball 60, his highest ever score in The Hundred. Jamie Smith took over as England's Test keeper, making 12 from his first three deliveries until he was clean bowled by Haris Rauf.
Liam Livingstone, Dan Mousley, and Jacob Bethell departed in quick succession, but Duckett held his nerve to steer his team to a crucial victory, with Benny Howell hitting the winning runs with seven balls to spare. Sean Abbott took 4 for 16 to star with the ball for Phoenix, collecting his second four-wicket haul of this season's Hundred.
Stephen Eskinazi scored a 21-ball 30 for Fire, but was bowled by Mousley, while the rest of the top-order struggled, with Luke Wells being dismissed by a slower ball by Adam Milne. Tom Kohler-Cadmore (54 from 32) injected some energy into the innings, hitting his first delivery for four and dispatching Howell over the ropes.
Matt Henry struck two boundaries off his compatriot Milne in the final set of the innings, but it proved in vain as Fire's hopes of reaching the knockout stage were extinguished. Abbott, the Meerkat Match Hero, expressed the relaxed vibe among the group and the good balance they have achieved in the last couple of games.