Southern Brave 115 for 3 (Dunkley 58*) beat Oval Invincibles 85 (van Niekerk 31*, Wellington 4-12, Bell 3-22) by 30 runs
The Hundred timed its first dead-rubber to perfection, with this undercard bubbling away while England and India's men were battling it out at Lord's, but Southern Brave's defence of 115 could yet prove significant.
Both sides came into this game with their knockout fate secured: Brave qualified for Saturday's final with their victory against Welsh Fire last week, while Oval Invincibles' progress to Friday's eliminator at their home ground was secured by Trent Rockets' defeat against Manchester Originals. But today's fixture took on added significance with the possibility that they will meet in the final.
Sophia Dunkley, England's breakthrough player this summer, set up Brave's win with 58 not out from No. 3, taking her to within four runs of Jemimah Rodrigues' tally for the tournament. Their total of 115 for 3 looked slightly under-par despite the used hybrid pitch playing slowly, but Amanda-Jade Wellington ripped through the middle order with a spell of 4 for 12 in 20 balls.
Brave's win was their seventh in eight group games and there is no doubt that they are the favourites heading into the knockout stages. Victory here came without Smriti Mandhana - who has returned home to spend time with her family before India's series against Australia - and while their big names all performed well, their core of uncapped domestic players - Lauren Bell, Tara Norris and Fi Morris - were crucial in keeping things tight in the chase.
Dunkley's dreamland
Dunkley is in the form of her life and has piled on the runs at the Ageas Bowl in this competition. She has scored 172 runs for once out in her four innings at home, with 131 of those coming since her last dismissal. "It's a great place to play," she laughed at the interval.
Dunkley was not at her best, and rode her luck with Invincibles uncharacteristically sloppy in the field. She survived a missed stumping on 2 when Sarah Bryce failed to gather a low full toss while unsighted, was dropped at long-on by Jo Gardner - the first of two chances she missed in the space of four balls - on 30, and benefited from some untidy work in the outfield.
But she was destructive through the leg side, latching onto anything short and scoring heavily through midwicket. Dunkley's split-hand grip gives her immense power when she swings to leg, and she was ruthless in targeting Mady Villiers, whom she hit for five fours - heading into a potential re-match in the final, the psychological advantage from those head-to-head match-ups should not be underestimated.
Wellington's wizardry
Wellington was a late replacement for Amelia Kerr in Southern Brave's squad but has been their star bowler throughout the Hundred. She is the only bowler in the women's competition to have taken 10 or more wickets while conceding less than a run a ball, and has pitched her case for an Australia recall, three-and-a-half years since her last cap.
She struck with her first ball on Monday, having Fran Wilson stumped to give Brave a much-needed breakthrough immediately after the Powerplay, and got the key wicket of Marizanne Kapp in the second half of the innings, who chipped tamely to mid-off.
The game was almost up by the time she returned for her last five balls, but she picked up the vital wicket of Dane van Niekerk, who holed out to Dunkley - who else? - in the deep on the leg side before having Gardner stumped second ball to complete her ignominious afternoon. That left one delivery for her to complete a five-for, which she ripped past Sarah Bryce's outside edge; she had to make do with the best bowling figures thus far of the women's competition.
