Durham Women kick off their Vitality T20 County Cup campaign tomorrow when they travel to the Midlands to face The Blaze at Lady Bay Sports Ground. [2:30pm]
Dani Hazell has named a 13-player squad for the last sixteen clash with tier 1 professional sides entering the competition at this stage.
Durham Academy batting all-rounder Charlotte Stubbs is named in 13 having signed a short term deal for the remainder of the Blast and is in contention to make her professional debut.
The 20-year-old is currently studying engineering at Durham University and has been part of the Durham Academy squad since 2025 – having represented England Under 19s at the 2025 ICC World Cup in Malaysia.
Heather Graham is unavailable for selection with overseas players not eligible in this competition.
Academy quick Laura Trotter is also included for the first time this summer, having last appeared for Durham during the 2025 pre-season tour of Zimbabwe.
Leah Dobson who has been on loan at Glamorgan for their Tier 2 Vitality Blast campaign is in contention to play her first match for Durham since last July.
Durham face The Blaze for the second time in the T20 format this summer – having cruised to victory by seven wickets at Trent Bridge in the Vitality Blast in May.
Words from Dani Hazell
We were pretty below par against Yorkshire. I don’t think it was a great game for both sides but for a couple of good individual performance. All in all, we were well below our own standards.
It probably turned into a bit of a dogfight at the end, but you don’t expect to win too many games getting 193 up top.
Trudy Johnson and Katie Levick, a 50 partnership at the back end was brilliant. They played really and showed a few how to play. But it also showed that it was a pretty decent wicket.
What we didn’t do is assess quickly enough at the start. We’ve done a lot of good stuff lately, so we won’t dwell too much. We have to learn and learn quickly.
We have the County Cup coming up this weekend, so it’s an opportunity to go back to T20 cricket. We’re looking forward to that and looking forward to getting back to winning ways.
Squad v The Blaze (20 June)
Hollie Armitage*, Leah Dobson, Abi Glen, Trudy Johnson, Katie Levick, Emma Marlow, Harriet Robson, Mia Rogers+, Charlotte Stubbs, Grace Thompson, Laura Trotter, Sophia Turner, Emily Windsor
Opposition Corner
Captain: Kirstie Gordon
2025 finish: Semi-finalists
2025 leading run-scorer: Georgia Elwiss (412)
2025 leading wicket-taker: Kathryn Bryce (17)
Key winter moves: The Blaze have signed talented Australia A all-rounder Charli Knott, who brings experience of the Women’s Premier League in India, the Women’s Big Bash and The Hundred, and hit five white-ball half-centuries for Hampshire Women last summer. Meanwhile, Emma Jones, formerly with Surrey, can provide useful runs in the middle order.
The big question: The Blaze, like others, will be depleted because of the clash with the Women’s T20 World Cup. They lose England’s Amy Jones and Nat Sciver-Brunt and Ireland’s Orla Prendergast, although it may be the unavailability of their three Scots, Kathryn and Sarah Bryce and Blaze skipper Kirstie Gordon, that is the most keenly felt. Can those left step up a level?
Wildcard watch: United States international Ella Claridge, whose country missed out on qualification for the T20 World Cup, has a chance to make her presence felt in the Vitality Blast. The 24-year-old wicketkeeper batter will carry some responsibility in the absence of Scotland’s Sarah Bryce and England’s Amy Jones but has proved before that she can rise to the challenge under pressure.
Final thought: Even stripped of six internationals, The Blaze still have the capacity to mount a challenge for silverware. Marie Kelly, a very capable top-order batter and excellent fielder, will captain the side, with experienced England batter Tammy Beaumont as a sounding board as well as a key source of runs. Charley Phillips, Grace Ballinger and Cassidy McCarthy are three top-notch seamers, while former England all-rounder Georgia Elwiss has enjoyed a couple of outstanding seasons with bat and ball.
Match Centre
The Club’s match centre will be in operation for the fixture with live scorecards, statistics & video highlights as they happen. You can watch the game live via Durham’s match centre and the The Blaze Cricket YouTube channel. Durham Cricket will have full coverage on social media of this County Cup fixture.