Torrential rain in Launceston causes chaos for WBBL|07

Saturday was supposed to be a thrilling day of women’s cricket but the weather on the Apple Isle clearly had other ideas.

Ground staff at Invermay Park and UTAS Stadium were hard at work on Saturday morning. (Photo by Sarah Reed/Getty Images)

Rotten weather in Launceston has put a dampener on what was supposed a blockbuster day of women’s cricket.

All four WBBL games scheduled to be played on Saturday were abandoned due to wet weather, as the pitches at Invermay Park and UTAS Stadium struggled to cope with the downpour.

Each side was awarded one competition point and none of the matches will be rescheduled.

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The first match of the day, between the Adelaide Strikers and Hobart Hurricanes, was called off after a significant rain delay during the first innings at Invermay Park.

The cancellation would have been particularly frustrating for the Strikers, who were in control after 16 overs of play.

Hurricanes batter Mignon du Preez shook off a disappointing start to WBBL07 by scoring 39 runs off 35 balls, but her solid individual effort wasn’t enough to deflate the Strikers’ attack.

Spinner Amanda-Jade Wellington sent two batters packing in the space of four balls, while young gun Darcie Brown claimed two wickets of her own.

The Hurricanes, who had been 2-70, found themselves five wickets down with only 107 runs on the board when play was halted due to the rain.

Stars opener Elyse Villani was looking forward to the hit-out. (Photo by Steve Bell/Getty Images)

The clash between the Melbourne Stars and Brisbane Heat was abandoned before a ball was bowled due to torrential rain at the same venue.

Stars opening batter Elyse Villani admitted she was disappointed the match had to be abandoned.

“It’s a real shame, to be honest,” she told Fox Cricket.

“I feel like we’ve got a bit of momentum at the moment after a really good win against the Sixers. We were looking to carry on that momentum today.

“I feel like it would have been a really great battle against the Brisbane Heat, particularly with a couple of short boundaries.”

Cricket pundits said poor drainage at Invermay Park was likely responsible for the two cancellations.

“It’s the pros and cons of getting away from the major grounds,” said former WODI star Mel Jones in commentary.

“The smaller grounds are perfect for some types of match-ups for WBBL.

“At the same time, the investment and the money that goes into the infrastructure isn’t quite there to match the big grounds.”

The first of two games set to be played at UTAS Stadium, a Sydney derby between the Sixers and Thunder, was delayed by almost an hour due to the weather before it was finally called off just after 4:30pm (AEDT).

The cancellation was made all the more frustrating for cricket fans given that Sydney is no longer in lockdown and was enjoying pristine weather on Saturday.

I’m just saying, the sun is shining in Sydney, lockdown is over and we’d love to host some WBBL https://t.co/17FrlXHzs9

— Megan Maurice (@meganmaurice) October 23, 2021

Shame, it’s an amazing day in Sydney…. https://t.co/CLO46xcFKm

— Malcolm Conn (@malcolmconn) October 23, 2021

The Thunder has played just one match in WBBL|07 so far but all-rounder Lauren Smith said the scheduling could work in the side’s favour.

“We’re really lucky to have most of our games televised, so we can see how the other teams play and get the information we need to play them,” Smith said.

“I think we got the good end of the stick with the scheduling.

“We know we’re going to have a pretty tight schedule coming into this back-end of the tournament, so I think a lot of the girls really took advantage of this rest that we had. But I think we’re all rested and ready to go and hopefully we’ll come out firing at the right time.”

The downpour forced the fourth clash, between the Melbourne Renegades and Perth Scorchers, to be delayed and ultimately cancelled.

Today’s weather update brought to you by @sophdevine77 🌧 thanks for your support and see you tomorrow! 💪 #MADETOUGH#WBBL07pic.twitter.com/QmCyROeEJa

— Perth Scorchers (@ScorchersBBL) October 23, 2021

Launceston is set to host the majority of the WBBL’s games for the rest of the the month but with rain also forecast for Sunday and next weekend, there could be more cancellations on the cards.

It was a rainy day on the Apple Isle. (Photo by Steve Bell/Getty Images)