Lightning beat Vipers in Finals Day warm-up

England opener Amy Jones hit a KSL career-best 74 not out from 53 balls for the Lightning

Loughborough Lightning hammered Southern Vipers by 36 runs in a dress rehearsal for their Kia Super League semi-final on Sunday.

Southern Vipers vs Loughborough Lightning scorecard

Both teams already qualified for Sunday’s Finals Day at Hove, and with Western Storm already guaranteed top spot, there was little riding on Wednesday’s final group-stage game other than the chance to gain a psychological edge before the weekend.

It was the Lightning who did just that, first posting 163-4 from their 20 overs after being put in to bat before then bowling out the Vipers for 127 with seven balls to spare.

England opener Amy Jones starred with the bat for Loughborough, smashing a KSL career-best unbeaten 74 from 53 balls, while Sri Lankan Chamari Atapattu took 3-18 from her four overs to go with her earlier 35 with the bat.

The Vipers were up against it almost immediately as Danni Wyatt fell for a first-ball duck in the opening over of their run-chase, while fellow top-order big names Suzie Bates and Tammy Beaumont could contribute only 20 and 13, respectively.

Loughborough are the form team heading into Sunday, having won their last six on the bounce. They face the Vipers again in the opening game of Finals Day, with the winner progressing to play the Storm in the final.

The Western Storm, meanwhile, lost their unbeaten record in their final group game against the Yorkshire Diamonds, going down by five runs in a thrilling finish.

Western Storm vs Yorkshire Diamonds scorecard

India’s Jemimah Rodrigues top-scored for the Yorkshire Diamonds as Western Storm suffered a first defeat

The Storm had won nine out of nine heading into the game, but fell foul of an in-form Jemimah Rodrigues, as the Indian batter struck 60 from 27 balls in Yorkshire’s 10-over total of 104-4 after a delayed start to rain.

In reply, the Storm struggled their way to 23-3 inside the fifth over, before a superb stand between Fran Wilson (45no off 20) and Sophie Luff (31no off 18) took the table-toppers close.

Twenty-three runs were smashed off the seventh over, 16 off the eighth and 12 from the ninth but, with a further 14 still required from the last, the Storm ultimately came up just short.

Elsewhere, the Surrey Stars inflicted a ninth defeat in 10 over the winless Lancashire Thunder as South Africa’s Lizelle Lee struck the fastest-ever fifty in the KSL.

Lancashire Thunder vs Surrey Stars scorecard

South African Lizelle Lee struck the fastest-ever fifty in the KSL, off just 17 balls

Lee pummelled 13 fours and three sixes on her way to 75 from 28 balls, bringing up her record fifty in just 17 deliveries.

In a rain-reduced nine-overs-a-side clash, Surrey amassed 132-1, with England’s Nat Sciver (50no off 26) too hitting a half century. In reply, Lancashire limped to 97-7 and a 35-run defeat.