Captain James Vince scored a sparkling unbeaten 71 as Southern Brave began the defence of their men's Hundred title with a thumping nine-wicket win over Welsh Fire.

A superb bowling effort from the Brave, with Chris Jordan and Craig Overton taking two wickets apiece, saw the Fire restricted to 107-7 and the home side needed just 69 balls to knock the runs off at the Ageas Bowl.

• Overton took the first wicket of this year’s tournament as he dismissed Fire opener Joe Clarke for a four-ball duck – and the visitors never really recovered.
• Ben Duckett top-scored with 40 from 31 balls, sweeping the spinners brilliantly before being dismissed by Jordan as the Brave seamers shone.
• Vince was dropped on five by Ryan Higgins and made the fielder pay with a punishing 41-ball knock that included eight fours and a six, bringing up his 50 from 31 balls and sharing a 72-run partnership with fellow opener Alex Davies.
• The Brave completed the win with 31 balls to spare and have now won eight games on the spin in The Hundred after reeling off seven in a row to take the trophy in 2021.

It was a near-perfect night for the Brave and West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite expects Vince’s men to be in the mix for the crown once again.

“It was a totally dominant performance from Brave,” he told BBC Sport. “They showed why they were last year's winners and they've recruited well and they've stuck to a style of play that has shown success.

“Southern Brave will be one of the teams to beat again.”

The Fire will have the chance to bounce back when they take on Oval Invincibles at Sophia Gardens on Sunday, while the Brave have a week to enjoy their victory before travelling to Edgbaston to face Birmingham Phoenix next Wednesday in a repeat of last year’s final.

Tomorrow's match is a big London derby as Oval Invincibles host London Spirit in the capital.

We will have live text commentary on the BBC Sport website of the match from 18:00 BST and you can listen to audio coverage online as well.

Image source, Getty Images

More from James Vince on BBC Two: "Craig [Overton] when he was here last year and not playing Test cricket was really good with the new ball, particularly on these hybrid pitches, he can find extra bounce.

"It was a bit tricky knowing when to bowl the spinners tonight because the seamers were going really well but we were a bit behind on the time - we were four minutes behind at one stage - but I was trying not to bowl too much spin when Ben Duckett was in and the ball was seaming around a little bit. The spinners did a great job as well.

"Obviously I want to play for England but I will focus on playing in The Hundred and for Hampshire and I'll see where it takes me."

Could James Vince be in the conversation for an England's squad for the T20 World Cup later this year? He looked in great form this evening.

James Anderson
England bowler on BBC Two

Southern Brave were absolutely on the money from ball one.

James Vince said at the toss that there might be something there early on and sometimes that puts pressure on your bowlers but it was so professional.

Once the wickets went down in the powerplay there was no way of coming back for Welsh Fire.

Carlos Brathwaite
West Indies all-rounder on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

Southern Brave's bowling is so good and it means they don't need to go too hard at the top of the order, they can just play proper cricket shots.

Southern Brave bowler Chris Jordan on BBC Two: "It was good the team could get off with a win and it was nice to contribute. The opening phase is important to work out whether there is any swing, or if the ball moves off the pitch. I try to get as much information as possible then when I come on I try to get as much as possible.

"My gold chain? It doesn't weigh me down when bowling! It's become part of my identity. It's something I have worn since being a kid and has stuck with me."

Phil Tufnell
Former England spinner on BBC Two

People will have learnt from the first year and you just can't afford to lose early wickets like Welsh Fire did. It looks like Fortress Ageas Bowl for the Brave again.

Moeen Ali
England & Birmingham Phoenix all-rounder on BBC Two

David Miller is available next week after finishing up with South Africa and that'll be a boost for Welsh Fire but they need Ben Duckett to get more runs this year.

Welsh Fire captain Josh Cobb on BBC Two: "It was a very tough night. We got outplayed in all areas of the game really. Obviously it is the first game of the competition and there were some cobwebs and you can't win it in the first game but obviously we've got to come back a lot stronger.

"It was a big toss to lose. They know how to play here and they bowled exceptionally well up top to us and got early wickets which put us under pressure.

"I don't think we need to do anything drastic. We looked a bit rusty so we've got to go back and be a lot better than we were tonight."

Alex Hartley
Former England bowler on BBC Two

I was really impressed with James Vince's captaincy early on, bowling his seamers back-to-back.

There was so much pressure on Welsh Fire and keeping the spinners away from Ben Duckett was good.

He is a brilliant captain.

Southern Brave captain James Vince on BBC Two: "The bowlers set it up brilliantly. It was a strength of ours last year, particularly here, and I thought we got our plans spot on. The guys early on found any movement in the pitch and early wickets help put the other team on the back foot.

"It doesn't feel that easy at the moment! There wasn't a huge amount of scoreboard pressure but it felt like the only way they could get back into the game was early wickets.

"The conditions were pretty good and under lights it perhaps came on a little bit better or perhaps we just bowled better than they did.

"You probably do relax a little bit after being dropped because you think you could be out, but I know fielding is a big part of short-format cricket and bar myself we were pretty good in the field and they were a bit average."

James Anderson
England bowler on BBC Two

James Vince is one of my favourite players. I love watching him bat. He is so fluent when he gets going. It is frustrating as a fan of watching him batting that he hasn't been able to go on in an England shirt, but now, with his experience, that will help him if he gets another chance.

James Vince was named hero of the match. We'll hear from him shortly.

Southern Brave's Jake Lintott speaking on BBC Two: " A great win. A real good team performance and James Vince made it look easy. Nice to get back in the wickets - that's my role in the team. There's so much data out there but it's still about getting batters out.

"My googly I back as much as my leg spinner and I keep working at things all the time. Would I like to play for England one day? That's is always the goal. It's got to be. I'll just keep doing what I can."

On working in tandem with promising 17-year-old spinner Rehan Ahmed: "I have taken him under my wing a little having been a teacher, although Rehan does not need much help. He is an exciting talent. It will work well with me and him through the middle period of games."

Moeen Ali
England & Birmingham Phoenix all-rounder on BBC Two

Image source, Getty Images

Southern Brave were fantastic from ball one tonight. It just felt like they were on and they had a great game.

All five of the seamers bowled really well and the spinners joined in. They look like the team to beat.

Mahela Jayawardene and James Vince seem to get it right most of the time and they've certainly got it right again this year it looks like.

Alex Hartley
Former England bowler on BBC Two

Image source, Getty Images

Southern Brave have picked up exactly where they left off last year.

In a tournament like this, where the games come thick and fast, winning momentum is so important.

They don't play until Wednesday but they have absolutely trashed Welsh Fire. It couldn't have been a better start from them.

Carlos Brathwaite
West Indies all-rounder on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra

It was a totally dominant performance from Brave. They showed why they were last year's winners and they've recruited well and they've stuck to a style of play that has shown success.

They have a very good bowling line-up and they strangle teams by bowling very defensively and as a result of that they pick up wickets along the way.

With the bat they were as clinical as ever, led by James Vince.

Southern Brave will be one of the teams to beat again.

Too early to say we expect Brave to lift this trophy again?!

Image source, Getty Images

Brave winpublished at 31 balls left

31 balls left

No glory moment for Southern Brave as Welsh Fire's Jake Ball bowls a no-ball to James Vince which goes above the legal height.

Easy night for the Brave who make it eight consecutive wins in The Hundred, carrying on where they left from last season.