Manchester Super Giants won The Hundred Final by five wickets at a packed Lord’s, denying Trent Rockets a historic double.

Rockets, table-toppers in the league format, had posted 158-8 but then saw Tim Seifert’s wonderful innings take the game away from them, despite a nerve-shredding finale.  

This was Manchester Super Giants’ third final and their first win, having been beaten by the Rockets in 2022 and the Oval Invincibles in 2023.

Rockets’ skipper Sam Billings – who had led Oval Invincibles to the last three titles having batted first each time – lost the toss, with Super Giants’ captain Jos Buttler opting to field despite that history.

The Rockets’ little-and-large pairing of Ben Duckett and Finn Allen made a solid start, the all-English 90 mph+ trio of Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Sonny Baker keeping a lid on things but finding themselves unable to break through. 

Rockets were 48-0 off 35, at which point Buttler brought on Afghan left-arm wrist spinner Noor Ahmad. Fours ball later both openers were gone, Allen caught on the edge and Duckett departing to a sharp take from Buttler behind the stumps. Duckett finished the tournament with 337 runs, behind only the SunRisers Leeds ‘opening pair of Mitch Marsh (416) and Ryan Rickelton (345), although he was later passed by Tim Seifert, who also leapfrogged Rickelton to end with 394.

Welsh powerhouse Aneurin Donald, who scored at a strike rate of 217.46 in this tournament – nobody else with more than 130 runs managed 185 – was in no mood to consolidate, hitting 17 off his first six balls, all from Ahmad, and continuing his assault against all and sundry. 79-2 at the halfway stage seemed the perfect platform.

The run out of Billings, and then Ahmad having Tim David caught behind first ball, followed by Liam Dawson bowling Donald for a 19-ball 38, saw the momentum swing back to the Super Giants, 97-5 off 70 feeling much more precarious. 

Mitch Santner and Lewis Gregory were forced into a rescue act, getting their eyes in before, with 20 balls left, Gregory opened his shoulders to hit Dawson into the Rockets’ hospitality box, following up by striking successive maximums off Atkinson.

The Rockets were looking for a big last ten but Tongue got Gregory for a 16-ball 33, although Craig Overton did then hit his first ball for four and Santner smote the 95th ball for a huge six to keep things moving.

Baker got Overton and Calvin Harrison – who had hit his only two balls of the tournament for six before today – with the last two deliveries but 61 runs in the last 30 was an impressive return. With 141 the par score at Lord’s in The Hundred men's competition this year and 146 in the history of the tournament, the Rockets will have been pleased with their 158-8.

Seifert took 14 off the first five from Mohammad Amir, who had been brought in for Matt Henry, and when Paul Walter got his long levers working with a couple of sixes, the Super Giants were motoring, 48 coming from the powerplay.

Seifert kept on blazing, although Allen did almost effect a miraculous relay catch but then, as in the Rockets’ innings, the first ball of spin brought a wicket, Walter heaving to deep midwicket to leave the score 66-1 off 31.

Just six came off the first 11 balls of spin – and Santner finished with 0-8 off 15 – before Seifert peppered the executive boxes to go to his fifth half-century of the tournament and the fastest in a final of The Hundred off just 20 balls, then Buttler followed suit with a maximum of his own. The Super Giants were a comfortable 87-1 at halfway, requiring another 72. 

Buttler hit 12 of them off successive Harrison deliveries but then, after Billings called a time-out, the all-time leading T20 run-scorer skied straight to David, gone for a 14-ball 23 that saw him retain his place as the tournament’s fifth highest run-scorer.

Leus du Plooy, who ended with a calm 27 off 18, was immediately busy and Seifert kept biffing and boshing, finally going for 72 off 38 with seven sixes, when the Super Giants needed 23 off 22. Seifert would end up as both Meerkat Match Hero and tournament. MVP.

Heinrich Klaasen was caught brilliantly by Donald before the end and Michael Bracewell was lbw second ball taking the game to the last five. Six successive dot balls, including two wickets, had ratcheted up the pressure but Liam Dawson then pumped Ben Sanderson over midwicket for six to start the celebrations.

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