Livingstone’s 66 beats his old side, and London Spirit finally have a win over Phoenix
London Spirit had lost to Birmingham Phoenix in every edition of the Hundred until Liam Livingstone, who spent all five of those seasons at Phoenix, made 66 off 30 balls at Lord’s.
Aug 10, 2026
London Spirit have spent five editions of the Hundred losing to Birmingham Phoenix. On 9 August at Lord’s they finally stopped, and the man who took the game away from Phoenix had spent those five editions in their dressing room.
Livingstone against the team he used to captain
Liam Livingstone made 66 off 30 balls, hit seven fours and four sixes, and was named player of the match in a seven-wicket win Spirit sealed with 18 balls to spare. He captains Spirit this season, having joined as a direct signing. Every previous season of the competition he spent at Phoenix, and last year he led them.
Phoenix had posted 162 for 4, which on a warm evening at Lord’s looked about 15 short. Joe Clarke did most of the work for them, 73 off 42 balls with five sixes, and Sean Dickson stayed unbeaten on 51 alongside him. Nobody else got going.
A record stand settles it
The chase turned on Livingstone and Dewald Brevis. Their stand was worth 103 from 46 balls, the highest for any wicket in Spirit’s T20 history, past the 96 Shimron Hetmyer and Keaton Jennings had put together. Brevis finished unbeaten on 55 from 31.
Indian viewers know Brevis from his Chennai Super Kings seasons, and this was a version of him they will recognise. Spirit lost Jonny Bairstow and Lhuan-dre Pretorius early, then reached 166 for 3 off 82 balls without ever looking hurried.
A dead rubber that still meant something
Neither side can reach the knockouts. Phoenix were out before the game started, Spirit soon after, and the last week of the group stage belongs to the five teams above them. It still carried weight for the home side. A first win over Phoenix in the men’s competition is the kind of line a dressing room notices even in a season that has gone nowhere.
Spirit’s problem this year has not been talent. Livingstone, Brevis and Bairstow give them a top order most sides in the tournament would take, and Lord’s is a ground where 160 is chaseable more often than not. The results did not follow. Two wins from their first seven matches left them seventh, and by the time the batting settled the maths had closed.
Phoenix have had a worse time of it. One win from seven going into the game, the bottom of the table, and now a defeat to the captain who left them for Lord’s. Livingstone is still the leading six-hitter in the history of the Hundred, most of those struck in a Phoenix shirt, which cannot have made the evening easier to watch from the away balcony.
What is left of the group stage
The competition moves to Trent Bridge on 10 August, where Trent Rockets meet Southern Brave with top spot and a direct route to the final at Lord’s on 16 August at stake. Manchester Super Giants play Sunrisers Leeds at Old Trafford on 11 August. Spirit finish at Sophia Gardens against Welsh Fire on 12 August, with the second and third-placed sides meeting in the eliminator at the Kia Oval on 14 August.