Harris blasts Spirit home to outfox Oval Invincibles

After Test series drama, the game's shortest format has returned with its usual glitz

- Taha Hashim

How do you follow that? Mohammed Siraj is still on the mind, bowling, always bowling, programmed to wobble it in at off-stump until the collapse of civilisation. Anyone who witnessed Chris Woakes, scrapping for singles with his slinged-up arm, merits a week off to head to the sauna, play the vinyls, whatever gets you to decompress.

But this is the English cricketing summer, refusing to give you a minute, packed beyond comprehension. A day after the conclusion of the Test summer, it was time to start the Hundred north of the river with the capital double-header: London Spirit against Oval Invincibles.

This is a stopgap season, the final year before new team owners - including four Indian Premier League franchises - enter with their own ideas of how to make this thing sing. For now, it is the same old tricks: fireworks in the daylight to kick off the new tournament and the awkwardness of the pop-up DJ booth, trying its best to convince those in: cricket is cool, cricket is cool, please kids believe me, cricket is cool.

Away from the gimmicks, there is quality. The Spirit women are the defending champions, with their opponents two-time winners.