WBBL 2020: Latest news and results from the Women’s Big Bash League
A star turn from a Strikers young gun and two batting masterclasses from WBBL heavyweights were the highlights of the latest round of matches — and three teams got results despite Sydney’s inclement weather.
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It’s hard to imagine an abandoned game turning into a nailbiter.
But this is what happened in the Strikers-Scorchers clash at Drummoyne Oval on Sunday.
Perth was well on its way to their second win of the season, having made 1-25 from 17 balls (chasing 52 runs from seven overs) when the drizzle came in harder, forcing a third rain delay.
The umpires and captains stood nervously nearby, checking not only the weather radar, but their watches: there were only nine minutes left to play out the game, with the Scorchers needing 10 runs from the next 13 balls for victory.
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Could the teams get back on the field in time? It was not to be.
Earlier, the Strikers overcame a slow start with the bat to notch up a solid 4-70 runs from 10 overs.
Their openers were slow and unadventurous to begin, with Tahlia McGrath and Laura Wolvaardt managing only seven runs (two of those wides) from the first three overs, falling to 2-19 by the end of the fifth.
But West Indian import Stafanie Taylor, belted four fours and a thumping six to hit 30 runs from only 16 balls bringing the Strikers total some respectability.
Moment of the match:
Instead of cramming in last-minute study for her Year 12 maths exam the following day, Adelaide teenager Darcie Brown found herself bowling to the world’s No. 1 ranked T20 all-rounder in Sophie Devine.
Brown produced a cracking first delivery to dismiss the Scorchers opener for a duck, caught behind after a mistimed an upper cut.
Knock of the match:
Last year when Madeline Penna faced Devine, it was Devine who hit Penna for five consecutive sixes. A year later – with both in new colours, Penna from Stars to Strikers and Devine from Strikers to Scorchers – Penna came to the crease to face Devine and had a little bit of revenge, hitting a big six and a confident four off Devine’s pace, finishing unbeaten on 11 (from only four balls).
Bowling spell of the match:
Perth medium pacer Taneale Peschel was handed the ball for the fifth over with the Strikers slow to start on 0-16. Her first ball dismissed McGrath (caught at point for six runs) and two balls later dismissed the dangerous Wolvaardt (caught at mid-on for 10) and conceded only three runs.
HEALY LAUNCHES SIXERS TO COMMANDING WIN
— Jocelyn Airth
An Alyssa Healy batting masterclass let the Sydney Sixers to a dominant 8 wicket (DLS) win over the Melbourne Renegades on Sunday afternoon.
Healy notched her eleventh WBBL half century off just 27 deliveries and was awarded Player of the match.
“It’s nice to get a full game under our belts, obviously to get the points on the bord it’s going to be crucial, especially with so much rain around” Healy said.
After rain reduced the fixture to 18 overs a side, the Renegades posted a total of 119 at Sydney Showground Stadium.
But the goal was too easy for the Magenta’s top order batters Healy, Ellyse Perry, Ash Gardner and Erin Burns, who snatched their second win for the season.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH
Sixers fans were treated to a true Healy masterclass. The Australian wicketkeeper scored a formidable 18 runs in the first over of her team’s chase. She whacked an exciting 60 off 31 balls – including eleven fours and one six – and received great support from her trusty partner Perry. Healy was sitting on a strike rate of 193.55 when Renegades Georgia Wareham eventually sent her packing.
BOWLING SPELL OF THE DAY
Teen star Stella Campbell notched figures of 2-11, after three overs. The Sixer dismissed Erin Fazackerley and Amy Satterthwaite and set up her teammate Hayley Silver-Homes with an exciting catch. “I’m really wrapped that (Stella) is striding in comfortably and she’s going to do some damage throughout this tournament” Healy said.
KNOCK OF THE DAY
Apart from Healy’s stunning innings, all-rounder Wareham was the other standout with the bat. The middle order batter took the crease just after the Sixers had taken the big wicket of Sophie Molineux. Wareham hit an unbeaten 54 off 27, including four 6s and five 4s, to keep the Renegades in the match. She finished on an incredible strike rate of 200.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
Healy joked that WBBL hub life has its challenges: “seeing seven other teams at breakfast is not my cup of tea, it’s all interesting, but we’re playing cricket and that’s all that matters … we’re turning into mates, that’s the issue.”
THUNDER SKITTLES HEAT AS RAIN TAKES HOLD … AGAIN
— Jocelyn Airth
A youthful Sydney Thunder defeated WBBL reigning champions the Brisbane Heat by 14 runs in drizzly conditions at Sydney Showground.
Rachael Haynes’ squad — featuring eight players aged 20-years-old and younger — showed maturity with both the ball and bat, during the rain-disrupted match on Sunday morning.
Opening batters Rachel Trenaman and Tammy Beaumont shared a strong 71-run partnership and set up Thunder with a 80-run lead after 12 overs.
Rain then halted play and Brisbane eventually returned to bat for five overs with a revised target of 45 (DLS).
But Thunder’s bowlers were just too good and proved, once again, that Trevor Griffin’s young side are genuine title contenders this Summer.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH
Thundery’s Sam Bates denied the Heat any chance of a comeback. The spinner from Newcastle mustered up a double wicket maiden to send both Grace Harris and Laura Kimmince packing. Bates’ dominance with the ball (2-0) inspired a flurry of wickets that culminated in former Heat bowler Sammy Jo Johnson sealing the deal for her new team.
KNOCK OF THE MATCH
Trenaman once again brought class to Thunder’s top order. The 19-year-old pushed through a slow start to finish on 38 off 34, including six 4s. She also inspired a strong partnership with fellow opener Beaumont, who hit 27 off 30.
BOWLING SPELLS OF THE MATCH
On Saturday, Heather Knight hit 83 off 39 to set a new highest score for a Thunder WBBL batter. On Sunday, the English international dismissed Maddy Green, Georgia Redmayne and Jess Jonassen in one single over (3-4. Is there anything she can’t do?
Heat’s Jonassen must also be credited for keeping Heat in the game. Just when Thunder’s opening duo Trenaman and Beaumont looked unstoppable, the all-rounder broke through. Jonassen dismissed Trenaman in the 10th over – thanks to a brilliant catch by Nadine de Klerkon the boundary – to end the dangerous partnership.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It’s just spitting too hard Mel, you can’t grip the ball in this weather. I’m surprised the batter can see it sometimes, you know how it falls in off your lid? If you’re watching rain drops trickle on down your helmet. The rain can just go west, go to the farmers, they need it more than we do” Brisbane Heat’s Grace Harris told Mel Jones and the Fox Cricket team, as rain forced players off the pitch.
STARS LUCK TURNS AFTER DODGING RAIN
— Liz Walsh
Finally! After three previous rain abandoned matches, the Melbourne Stars were able to complete a WBBL06 game — and it was a comprehensive eight-wicket win over Hobart Hurricanes.
Going into the game, the Stars were the only team yet to complete a match and as such they played with the intensity of a team desperate to prove their worth.
The Sydney spring rain delayed the start at Drummoyne Oval, and when play got underway it was a 19-over-a-side game and the Stars had the Hurricanes on the ropes right from the start, taking a wicket in each of the first four overs.
With Hobart slumped to 4-24 by the end of the power play, it was up to Australian all-rounder Nicola Carey to guide her team, but she was unable to build any decent partnerships, as wickets at the other end simply tumbled.
Carey topscored for Hobart with 26 (37 balls) and was still at the crease when the 19th over was done with the score at 9-89.
The Canes'’s 11 batters managed one six and five fours between them and in comparison, the Stars were in a hurry to win the game and their openers — Elyse Villani and Meg Lanning — hit six boundaries in the first four overs.
Moment of the match:
By the 11th over, Villani was seeing the deliveries like beach balls and the full-tosses that Chloe Tryon threw up went for back-to-back sixes which brought up her half-century, helping to bring up the winning runs with eight overs to spare.
Knock of the match:
Villani provided a stack of highlights for the Stars in their run chase. In the second over, she hit three well-placed fours off the bowling of Hayley Matthews, and simply continued on her merry way, ending with an unbeaten 51 (32 balls).
Bowling spell of the match:
Stars’ quick Katherine Brunt – widely regarded as England’s greatest ever fast bowler – finished her four-over spell in the same way she started it: with wickets. Brunt took the crucial wicket of opener Rachel Priest for a first-ball duck in the first over, and clean-bowled Brooke Hepburn for one in the final over. She finished with figures of 3-17 and was Player of the Match.
KNIGHT BATTERS STRIKERS WITH FAST FIFTY
Heather Knight put on a batting masterclass as the Sydney Thunder beat the Adelaide Strikers by 58 runs at Sydney Showground Stadium.
The England captain smashed 83 runs off just 39 balls – the highest total for a Thunder player in the history of the WBBL – as the Thunder set the Strikers an imposing target of 191 runs to win.
While dynamic openers Sophie Devine and Beth Mooney have notched another strong partnership
to lead the Perth Scorchers to victory over the Renegades, their first win of the WBBL season.
It was Knight’s first real knock for the Thunder after their opening two matches of the season were washed out.
With the threat of rain around the ground again ever-present, the Thunder were sent into bat by the Strikers and they absolutely made the most of it.
Sammy-Jo Johnson, batting for the first time in lime green after moving across from the Brisbane Heat, set the tone with an explosive 30 runs off 13 balls. She was devastating in the seventh over, smashing four sixes off the bowling of Amanda-Jade Wellington as the Thunder took 25 runs from it.
SAMMY-JO 🔥😱 The @ThunderBBL new recruit sends four massive sixes over the rope in the over! #WBBL06 @CommBank pic.twitter.com/fWDF8Wa967
— Rebel Women's Big Bash League (@WBBL) October 31, 2020
But it was then the formidable partnership of Knight and captain Rachael Haynes that set the Thunder on track for a huge total. Some wonderful hitting of her own saw Haynes contribute 39 runs to the pair’s 122-run partnership as they rotated the strike to perfection. The Strikers just had no answers for the right-hand/left-hand combination and at times made it too easy for Knight and Haynes by bowling far too short.
So often on opposite sides when England and Australia face off, Knight was thrilled to be batting alongside Haynes for a change.
“It was quite nice to bat with her rather than set fields to her, obviously having played against her quite a lot,” Knight said.
“We were talking about 170, so to get to that 190 mark was really nice”
If the Strikers were going to get anywhere near to the target, they would need a telling contribution from the tournament’s leading run-scorer, Laura Wolvaardt. Unfortunately the talented South African couldn’t replicate her previous heroics, falling for just 10 runs.
Stafanie Taylor then managed just 18 runs as the Strikers quickly lost sight of the target, eventually falling 58 runs short.
MOMENT OF THE MATCH
She might be in a different colours having left the Brisbane Heat for the Thunder, but Sammy-Jo Johnson picked up from where she left off last season. Johnson turned the game in the seventh over, when she hit four sixes off the bowling of Amanda-Jade Wellington to take a total of 25 runs from it.
Heather Knight is on fire! Three consecutive boundaries to reach her half-century, and she's not slowing down!
— Rebel Women's Big Bash League (@WBBL) October 31, 2020
Tune in LIVE on 7Mate, Foxtel, Kayo Sports or ABC Radio #WBBL06 pic.twitter.com/oyRgZ6YW2i
KNOCK OF THE MATCH
With impeccable timing, Heather Knight was devastating as she smashed her way to 83 off just 39 balls. The English captain reached her half-century with three consecutive boundaries as she went on to reach the highest total for the Thunder player in the history of the WBBL.
BOWLING SPELL OF THE MATCH
Lauren Smith bowled beautifully for her first full game in the Thunder colours after she moved across from rivals the Sixers. She took the crucial wicket of Laura Wolvaardt, before ending with impressive figures of 3-26.
QUOTE OF THE MATCH
“It was a brilliant innings from her (Sammy-Jo Johnson) and I didn’t want her to have all the fun, so I tried to replicate what she did at the back end of that powerplay.” Heather Knight
SCORCHING START DAMPENS RENEGADES HOPES
While play was abandoned at Drumoyne Oval in Sydney just 9.5 overs into the Scorchers’
innings, they were well in front of the adjusted target under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern
method and beat the Melbourne Renegades by 18 runs.
Sent in to bat, the Renegades collapsed to 3-16 early in their innings – thanks in part to
a magnificent Mooney catch – but recovered to make 5-105 from their 20 overs
before Mooney (23 off 32) and player of the match Devine (31 off 28) cruised to
0-62 before the players were sent off following a lightning strike.
The pair, who also played pivotal roles in the field, had an opening stand of 55 in last
week’s loss to the Brisbane Heat and looked untroubled against the Renegades’
bowlers, with Devine’s innings including three fours and a six.
With rain affecting the opening two weekends of the season, every win is precious and the
victory pushed the Scorchers momentarily into the top four, while the Renegades
are languishing in seventh place just ahead of the Hobart Hurricanes.
Beth Mooney with a one-handed screamer if you don't mind!
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) October 31, 2020
LIVE: https://t.co/VJ7suQH4s1 #WBBL06 pic.twitter.com/eMg0JCQLJU
THE MOMENT
Renegades batter Lizelle Lee’s frustrating season continued, the South African
international dismissed in the second over pushing at a Sophie Devine
half-volley and edging to wicketkeeper Beth Mooney, who took a strong diving
catch.
The marquee player did not bat in the Renegades’ rain-affected fixtures last weekend and
her dismissal for just five runs off eight balls started a top-order collapse
from which her team struggled to recover.
THE KNOCK
The opening stand between Kiwi captain Devine (31 off 28) and Mooney (23 off 32) was a
matchwinner but they had to play at pace in the opening overs after some
strong batting from Courtney Webb and Georgia Wareham helped the Renegades to a
competitive total after their floundering start.
Webb (33 off 44) was run out by Mooney off the second-last ball of the over trying to
sneak off for a quick run, while Wareham finished on 22 not out (14), with her
efforts suggesting she may earn a promotion up the order at some stage of the
season.
THE SPELL
While Devine and Mooney combined early for the key wicket of Lee, a pair of wickets
from off spinner Nicole Bolton proved key as she locked down the Renegades
batters, conceding just 13 runs from her spell.
Bolton bowled Erin Fazackerley to have the Renegades at 2-6, and while she dropped Sophie Molineux – one of four dropped catches in the field by the Scorchers – on four, she claimed
her wicket in the 16th over, breaking a 67-run partnership.
THE QUOTE
Scorchers’ captain Sophie Devine after her side’s 18-run win over the Renegades.
“We knew the Renegades were going to come out hard at us but I thought the bowlers were
fantastic early on … we spoke a lot about their key players and we know how
destructive they can be, especially Lizelle Lee, Amy Satterthwaite and Sophie
Molineux and how they can take a game away from a side but we had really clear
plans and we executed brilliantly.”
HEAT, HURRICANES & SIXERS, STARS MATCHES ABANDONED
Heavy rain in Sydney has again disrupted the Women’s Big Bash League for a second weekend, with Brisbane Heat’s match against the Hobart Hurricanes abandoned just three runs short of a result.
The Hurricanes won the toss and sent Brisbane into bat, a decision that was immediately rewarded when Georgia Redmayne was bowled by Belinda Vakarewa with just the second delivery of the match.
But Maddy Green and Jess Jonassen put on an excellent 56-run partnership, with Green in particular looking in good touch until she was caught and bowled by Nicola Carey for 33.
Perhaps with an eye on the sky and the ominous clouds overhead, Jonassen (29 not out) and Grace Harris (13 not out) did their best to stack on the runs.
It was unfortunate for them that the rain came in the 11th over with the Heat 2-80. A lengthy rain delay meant that was the end of the Heat’s innings, with the Hurricanes set a revised target of 106 to win in 11 overs.
Tasked with a tricky chase, a slow start wasn’t on the cards for Rachel Priest and Chloe Tryon as they began the Hurricanes’ innings.
And they wasted no time. They hit three boundaries in the second over, with Tryon racing to 26 off 15 deliveries and Priest adding 16.
But then the rain came again three balls into the fifth over. Five overs constitutes a match, meaning the match was abandoned without a result.
The Sydney Sixers v Melbourne Stars match was abandoned without a ball being bowled.
Originally published as WBBL 2020: Latest news and results from the Women’s Big Bash League