Rehan Ahmed continued his fine form before Trent Rockets made hard work of a three-wicket victory over Birmingham Phoenix at Trent Bridge.

Leg-spinner Ahmed took an immaculate 3-15 as Phoenix were restricted to 111-9 on a slow pitch and then hit 37 from 23 balls at number three to break the back of the chase.

He was caught at deep square leg to start a collapse of 4-11 and, when Marcus Stoinis and Sam Hain followed, England’s Jacob Bethell was left with six runs to defend from the last five balls.

Left-arm spinner Bethell conceded only one from the next two balls, but Ben Cox swept the penultimate ball for four to seal victory.

Rockets were already guaranteed a place in Saturday’s eliminator and had to only avoid a heavy defeat to secure second in the table.

While the stodgy pitch and edgy batting performance means Rockets built little momentum before their meeting with Northern Superchargers, the showing of 21-year-old Ahmed continues to offer great encouragement for franchise and country.

After an impressive summer for Leicestershire, Ahmed now has 10 wickets in The Hundred at an economy with 6.76 – the second best of any bowler to have played more than four matches behind Jofra Archer.

Here he had opener Will Smeed bowled with a googly via an inside edge for 23, Bethell caught reverse sweeping to backward point for a three-ball duck and Benny Howell slog-sweeping to deep mid-wicket for three as Phoenix’s scoring ground to a halt after reaching 42-1 after 28 balls.

With the bat he dazzled with five fours and one six – the only time a Rockets batter cleared the boundary in the chase – and put on 64 for the second wicket with Joe Root, who made a run-a-ball 25.

After the eliminator, and potentially Sunday’s final, Ahmed will link up with England for their white-ball series against South Africa, having already secured an international recall.