Alex Hales left in heap after consecutive balls to very painful area during Hundred clash

Taking a fast ball to the nether regions is one of the most physically painful things that can happen in cricket.

But Alex Hales was forced to go through the pain twice in one evening after suffering that cruel blow in successive balls.

The 32-year-old was at the crease batting for Trent Rockets as his side failed to chase down the 125-6 score set by Oval Invincibles in the sides' clash in The Hundred.

With 102 runs still needed, Hales swung at a Reece Topley delivery but missed, and let out a scream of agony as the ball struck him hard - right where it hurts.

He was on the floor for a while as he recovered, punching the ground in frustration and rolling around as he received treatment.

But there was little sympathy from the crowd or from the opposition players, with the bowler Topley making little effort to hide his amusement at his opponent's painful predicament.

Incredibly, after Hales had finally recovered to face the next ball, lightning struck twice as another Topley delivery pitched up and hit the Rockets batter in exactly the same place.

Hales crumpled to the floor once again, and this time even umpire Nigel Llong struggled to hide his smirk as the Kia Oval crowd burst into laughter once more.

As well as successive, painful blows, Hales suffered more agony with his teammates as the Rockets fell to defeat in a truncated game affected by the earlier rain.

The Invincibles were invited to bat first and hit two early sixes before losing four quick wickets to leave a score of 68-4.

But opening batsman Jason Roy produced a fine performance at the crease to score 56 for himself, firing the hosts to a 125-6 score off their 65 balls.

Hales started his innings brightly as the Rockets worked to chase their opponents' total, but he saw opening partner D'Arcy Short and Dawid Malan fall early on.

And he would eventually be removed by a delivery from Sunil Narine, shortly after his double blow.

The Rockets remain top of the table in the inaugural men's competition, but are now only a point ahead of the Invincibles, level on points with the Southern Brave after six matches each. 

Reference: Mirror: Daniel Moxon