Familiar names amongst the runs as England's build-up continues

Team Brittin 362 for 4 (T. Beaumont 73, D. Wyatt 52, N. Sciver 92, S. Dunkley 42*) beat Team Heyhoe Flint 210 all out (E. Lamb 61) by 152 runs.

There was something reassuring about seeing England’s established top order score runs in the latest training game ahead of the one-day series against South Africa next month.

The one exception being Amy Jones, who failed to score in Team Heyhoe Flint’s pursuit of 363 to win at Derby. It was too many for Jones’ team who lost by 152 runs.

In the second intra-squad game in preparation for a proposed series with South Africa - that has still not been officially ratified at government level - Danni Wyatt and Tammy Beaumont shared an opening stand of 125 for Team Brittin. Both batted nicely as the bowling failed to trouble them on a good batting track.

While it is was never going to be easy for bowlers, they were too wayward to both Wyatt and Beaumont. Wyatt, who top-scored with 88 in the opening match on Thursday, was in the runs again with an assured 50 from 53 balls before finding Bryony Smith from the bowling of Sarah Glenn.

Natalie Sciver was circumspect at the start of her innings, allowing Beaumont to continue the attack to the bowlers. There were nine fours and one six Beaumont’s innings of 73.

Team Heyhoe Flint could not stem the steady flow of runs as Sciver and Fran Wilson took their side towards 300. The first 100 runs of their third-wicket partnership of 127 came from just 89 balls.

Sciver was heading towards a century of her own but fell agonisingly short on 92, Freya Davies making the breakthrough having seen her previous three balls disappear for six and two fours.

Sophia Dunkley, who has been on the fringes of the England team for a couple of years now, did her chances of a game against South Africa no harm by smashing 42 runs from just 16 balls.

Team Heyhoe Flint would require a good start to if they were to stand any chance of winning. It never happened as Jones was first to go - Kate Cross taking the early wicket - and Team Brittin was amongst the top order.

Bryony Smith (8) and Georgia Elwiss (5) were soon back in the shed. For a while, Emma Lamb and Katherine Brunt steadied the innings, Lamb’s first bat of the year bringing her 50 in just 43 balls.

Sophie Ecclestone, Lamb’s Lancashire teammate would turn the game for good as she took the wickets of Lamb and Brunt within five balls of each other.

Even Sarah Glenn who scored an unbeaten fifty on Thursday could not keep her team in the game as the run-rate kept going up and Team Brittin’s grip on the game tightened.