Devine dominant for Strikers in WBBL
New Zealander Sophie Devine has spearheaded a record-breaking effort from the Adelaide Strikers in their 45-run opening round Women’s Big Bash League win over Hobart Hurricanes on Saturday.
Sent in at Glenelg’s Gliderol Stadium, Strikers amassed a franchise record top score of 183-3.
Devine smashed an unbeaten 46 off 21 balls and then took 2-20 as the Hurricanes were held to 138-9.
The Strikers top order trio of overseas stars laid the platform for their strong batting effort.
New captain and Devine’s fellow Kiwi Suzie Bates (31 off 24) and England’s Tammy Beaumont (43 off 39) got the innings off to a strong start.
Australian representative Tahlia McGrath (22 off 21) , and Bridget Patterson (26 not out off 18) all kept the scoreboard ticking over.
Devine McGrath (2-15) and Australian strike bowler Megan Schutt (2-26) all made inroads, as the Hurricanes failed to build a major partnership.
West Indian Hayley Matthews (35 off 27) and Veronica Pyke (26 not out off 20) were Hobart’s highest scorers.
The first day of the WBBL saw some extraordinary record-breaking batting feats.
Sydney Thunder got the ball roiling with a league record team score of 200-6 in the opening match against Melbourne Renegades at North Sydney Oval.
The mark lasted just a few hours, as their cross-town rivals and defending champions, Sydney Sixers, playing against Melbourne Stars at the same venue, belted 242-4.
It was the highest innings score recorded by an Australian Big Bash team of either gender.
The Sixers’ innings featured a WBBL individual record high score of 114 off 52 balls from Ashleigh Gardner.
The 20-year-old Australian ODI and T20 representative logged just the third WBBL ton.
Gardner recorded the quickest WBBL century of 47 balls having earlier notched the fastest 50 off 22 deliveries, a feat later equalled by the Stars’ Lizelle Lee in her knock of
64.
Thunder’s Nicola Carey might have nabbed the record earlier but her team’s innings ended with her unbeaten on 47 off just 17 balls.
Elysse Perry, who scored a unbeaten 213 in the recent Ashes test and 127 not out in her last oneday innings for NSW, joined in the run fest with a undefeated 91 off 49 balls against the Stars.
Former Australian representative and Collingwood AFL player Jess Duffin (nee Cameron) scored a match-high 81 off 47 in the Renegades 11-run loss.
An astonishing 19 sixes were hit across the match in the Sixers’
86-run win in a game which also produced a WBBL record aggregate of 398 runs.
The early season glut of high scoring didn’t come as a surprise to Perry.
‘‘You can probably put it down to a few things,’’ she said.
‘‘We’re another year into the development of women’s cricket.
‘‘Most of the players have been fulltime elite cricketers for the last 12 months, so that’s always going to lead to development.
‘‘The girls are fitter, they are stronger, they’ve had more time to work on their technique and get to know their games.
‘‘So it’s probably not surprising in a lot of ways.’’