Berkshire batter Johnny Connell scored a rapid hundred playing a T20 Blast warm-up match against Sussex, who had two former England bowlers in their ranks.
Playing at Horsham CC on Wednesday (May 20), Connell fought back in a steep chase against the 2009 Blast Champions. Set 227 to win, Berkshire lost two wickets in two balls in the second over of their innings after captain and former England white-ball bowler Tymal Mills bowled a double-wicket maiden. Opener Rhys Lewis fell caught behind square on the leg side attempting to ramp against Mills, while No.3 Ben Salter was out for a first-ball duck, edging to John Simpson behind the stumps.
Minor counties batter Johnny Connell slams hundred in T20 Blast warm-up
Connell, however, launched a counter-attack. He reverse-swept James Coles for six in the following over, before hitting back-to-back fours off Danny Briggs – another former England bowler. Off the 25th ball of his innings, Connell hit a six back over Danny Lamb's head to bring up his half-century. Continuing to accelerate, he took two more sixes off Lamb's over, before hitting two more against Briggs.
It took Connell even fewer balls to bring up his second 50, reaching his hundred off his 44th ball at the crease by flat-batting a short ball from Fynn Hudson-Prentice down the ground. At that point in the innings, Berkshire needed 84 runs off the final five overs to win the game, six wickets down with Connell on a lone mission. Having scored 121 off 53 balls, Connell was finally out, mistiming a ball from Lamb into the hands of Tom Haines.
Sussex went on to take three wickets in the following two overs to bowl Berkshire out for 177.
As well as playing for Berkshire, Connell has been playing second XI cricket for Essex since last year. He was appointed T20 captain at Berkshire at the beginning of this year, with a top score of 83.
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