Wolvaardt stars as Strikers edge Thunder in thrilling finish
Adelaide Strikers pipped the Sydney Thunder by three runs in a thrilling last-ball finish at Cricket Central, Sydney on Tuesday, November 21.
After winning the toss and bowling first, the Thunder struck off their very first ball, with Marizanne Kapp trapping Katie Mack in front for a golden duck. Tahlia McGrath was knocked over soon after by Kapp, and while Laura Wolvaardt scored freely at the other end, the run-out of Bridget Patterrson and the wicket of Madeline Penna reduced the Strikers to 31-4. A stand of 43 between Wolvaardt and Danielle Gibson led a brief recovery, and despite another flurry of wickets from 74-4 to 80-7, a 41-run stand between Megan Schutt and Wolvaardt, off 22 deliveries, secured a total of 121 at quicker than a run-a-ball.
In response, the dangerous Chamari Athapaththu was dismissed for a duck in the first over by Jemma Barsby. Megan Schutt got rid of Phoebe Litchfield soon after, and despite some resistance, the middle order collapsed to 67-6 in the chase, before a bit of resistance from Tahlia Wilson, who put on 47 with Sammy-Jo Johnson. However, with Wilson dismissed of the penultimate ball, and eight to win off the last ball, Lauren Smith’s four was not enough, as the Strikers edged home by three runs.
Brief Scores: Adelaide Strikers 121-7in 20 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 70*, Marizanne Kapp 2-23)beat Sydney Thunder 118-7in 20 overs (Tahlia Wilson 33, Megan Schutt 2-23)by 3 runs
Facing a must-win situation to keep their playoffs chances alive, Sydney Sixers prevailed in a last-over finish against Brisbane Heat at the Allan Border Field on Tuesday (November 21). Chasing a stiff target of 177, the out-of-form Sixers batting unit rose to the occasion with a collective performance to hand Heat their third successive defeat of the competition.
Put into bat, Heat were jolted straightaway as Grace Harris departed second ball to a snorter from Lauren Cheatle. With a bit of moisture on a fresh pitch, there was early movement and extra bounce for the quicks. Sixers’ seamers utilised that impressively to have Heat at 34/3 in the sixth over. However, Amelia Kerr and Mignon du Preez added 64 off just 49 in a counterattacking partnership to flip the momentum. The South African continued her good form in the tournament and timed the ball from the get-go. Kerr also started quickly before playing second fiddle to her partner and once du Preez fell, the New Zealander switched gears once again.
The riveing 10-ball 29 from Charli Knott was the perfect finisher’s knock that Heat needed as they got past the 175-run mark when it initially seemed like a 160-ish score was realistic. The surface also got increasingly better to bat with dew falling. It also meant that the Sixers weren’t out of the game but they need their batters to stand up – something that had been missing for most parts this season. Skipper Ellyse Perry set the tone with a quickfire cameo and the rest of the batters followed suit, notably Erin Burns whose 20-ball 35 was what really turned things around for the Sixers. Chasing down 177 with a top-score of 36 should tell you how collective the performance was.
There was a brief moment of stutter when Ashleigh Gardner and Burns fell in quick succession but Mathilda Carmichael once again showed her prowess under pressure and saw the game through with Maitlan Brown.
Brief scores: Brisbane Heat 176/7 in 20 overs (Amelia Kerr 64, Mignon du Preez 42; Ellyse Perry 3-40) lost to Sydney Sixers 177/5 in 19.5 overs (Ashleigh Gardner 36, Erin Burns 35; Jess Jonassen 2-26) by five wickets
