Kathryn Bryce "absolutely ecstatic" following Lightning's maiden Charlotte Edwards Cup win

Lightning defeated Thunder by five wickets in Leicester to end a run of eight T20 matches without a win

Lightning broke their eight-match winless run in the Charlotte Edwards Cup with a five-wicket win over Thunder on May 21, a result which has left the squad "absolutely ecstatic" according to skipper Kathryn Bryce.

Thunder arrived at the Uptonsteel County Ground, Leicester, on a high having completed an impressive 56-run victory over Northern Diamonds earlier in the week - a match their youthful side went into as underdogs.

Lightning, by contrast, started their 2022 season with back-to-back defeats against Diamonds (39 runs) and Southern Vipers (31 runs).

"We knew [Thunder] were going to have the confidence coming from that win, but we tried to go in with the same confidence, thinking that we had two wins behind us and go out there believing that we could win the game," said Bryce.

Thunder won the toss and elected to bat first, posting 152 for 5. However, despite Emma Lamb (56) and Georgie Boyce (71) sharing the second-highest Charlotte Edwards Cup partnership, their stand of 130 was undone by five wickets falling for just 22 runs at the death.

^{Tammy Beaumont (left) and Piepa Cleary (right) were the standout players for Lightning [Gareth Copley/Getty Images]}

Bryce commented: "We knew they weren't getting away from us. We were bowling really good areas and they weren't flying and actually once we got a couple of wickets, we knew we could stall momentum and that's what happened at the end there."

Australian pacer, Piepa Cleary was the pick of Lightning's bowling attack, taking three wickets for 34 runs. Young spinner Josie Groves, meanwhile, picked up her first Charlotte Edwards Cup scalp, dismissing the dangerous Boyce for 71.

In response, Marie Kelly showed Lightning's intent, scoring eight off the first two balls of the innings before Alex Hartley came into the mix and dismissed the attacking opener lbw. 19-year-old Ella Claridge played in a similar fashion, scoring a quick 24 in support of England stalwart Tammy Beaumont's 59.

"Marie set the tone for the innings really, just going out there and playing with that intent, Tammy just went on and carried that on for her," continued a beaming Bryce.

"You always need a good partnership in there when you're breaking a chase and from the start, they got the run rate down and it never got above eight, it was mainly sevens which was brilliant."

"It was really good for Ella Claridge to come in and play with that freedom, I think she did a really good job backing her game."

Lightning always looked to have control of the game despite captain Bryce falling on 29 in the 18.2 over with just seven runs required. A composed innings by Bethan Ellis (19 not out) and Teresa Graves (1 not out) finished off the match with seven balls to spare to record Lightning's first Charlotte Edwards Cup win.

"It was frustrating not to see it through until the end, it was definitely there to hit, and it was a good catch from Ellie [Threlkeld], a bit annoying but we got over the line," Bryce said of her dismissal.

"We're absolutely ecstatic [with the win]. The whole winter has been leading up to this moment [and] to go out there and win a game like that was a brilliant team effort and hopefully, we can continue that momentum on for the rest of the competition."

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