Sydney Sixers prove too good for Adelaide Strikers despite a valiant team effort by the electric blues

It was a must-win game to keep their finals hopes alive, and it came so close. But still the Adelaide Strikers can’t seem to work out how to beat the Sydney Sixers.

IT came close, so agonisingly close, to being a very happy New Year for the Adelaide Strikers.

But despite a valiant all-round effort, the team went down to the Sydney Sixers at Adelaide Oval by eight runs on New Year’s Eve.

Having yet to beat the Sixers in four seasons of WBBL, this was a must-win game for them, if they had any chance of keeping a finals berth alive.

And while all the pieces seemed to be there — tight bowlers, boundary-finding batters — the puzzle of how this team can beat the Sixers remains unsolved.

Playing her 50th game for the Strikers Megan Schutt bowled three tight overs early conceding only 15 runs.

However, the question was always going to be: who’s going to get openers Alyssa Healy and Ellyse Perry out?

That was answered by Sophie “The Headband” Devine, who clean bowled Healy (whose cricketing husband Mitchell Starc was watching from the stands) for 23 off 15 balls and the Sixers found themselves at 1/31.

A critical early wicket for the Striker was when Sixers opener Alyssa Healy was bowled by Sophie Devine for 23 runs. Picture: SARAH REED

That was a critical wicket given Healy almost single-handedly beat the Strikers the previous Friday with her unbeaten innings of 112.

With Healy out early, it became relatively slow going from there.

Perry and Ashleigh Gardner gently meandered their way to decent individual scores using a smattering of fours and a whole lot of singles.

Then from the 16th over, the wickets began to fall: Perry (47 from 47 balls) was caught by captain Suzie Bates in the outfield off an Amanda-Jade Wellington ball and an over later Ashleigh Gardner was caught behind from a Devine delivery for 49 runs (38).

Another over on and Wellington (who was also celebrating her 50-game milestone) struck again, with Tegan McPharlin stumping Sara McGlashan for 1.

Suzie Bates takes a diving catch to help dismiss Ellyse Perry for 47 runs. She celebrates with Sarah Coyte. Picture: SARAH REED

By the end of that 18th over, the Sixers had amassed a relatively conservative 4/132 total, with a run rate of 7.33.

The discipline of the bowlers and field would have pleased the Strikers to no end, given in the previous game, by the same over, the Sixers had reached 1/181 at a run rate of 10.06.

Schutt rounded out the bowling and the Strikers had a total of 148 for the win, certainly within their reach.

There was also a headband challenge going on, with Devine challenging players to wear headbands — similar to her own — and she’d donate $100 to charity on their behalf.

Sixers bowlers Dane van Niekerk and Sarah Aley got into the action, as did her teammate Schutt, who’d wrapped one around her forearm while in the field.

Adelaide Strikers captain Suzie Bates was on a boundary-finding mission at the Adelaide Oval, but her 60 runs weren’t quite enough as the blues lost to Sydney Sixers by eight runs. Picture: SARAH REED

The Strikers’ run chase didn’t start well, with Devine caught behind for 1 in the second over.

Her opening partner Bates was on a boundary mission and in the first six overs, she’d already hit seven fours.

However, she needed batting partners to support her on that mission, and when Tabatha Saville and Bridget Patterson exited in consecutive overs, Bates was two more partners down.

New batter Tahlia McGrath joined in with her own big hits and made a terrific knock (45 from 25) and was the perfect support for Bates, who made 60 before being caught Perry.

At this point, the Strikers needed 30 runs from 21 balls.

Despite a quick 10 from Schutt, it wasn’t enough and the Strikers ring in 2019 with a dismal 2-6 win loss record with one abandoned match.

They next head to Queensland where they take on the Brisbane Heat on January 5.