Roff fires Foxes to double success with career bests
D’NICA Roff had a weekend to remember, scoring her maiden hundred and collecting careerbest figures as the all-rounder fired Leicestershire to two victories in two days, writes Jack Gabriel.
The 17-year-old smashed 104 on Sunday as Leicestershire U18 Girls cantered to a 303-run victory over Lincolnshire, before spinning the senior Women’s side to a six-wicket victory over Huntingdonshire with figures of 6-17 on Bank Holiday Monday.
The victory on Monday at Oakham School saw leg-spinner Roff (8.2-1-17-6) lead a fightback with the ball alongside April Herathge, who ended with superb figures of 10-3-15-3.
The hosts had raced to 68 without loss midway through the 15th over before the pair took nine of the ten wickets to fall to skittle Huntingdonshire out for 117.
Roff picked up two wickets in two balls to end the innings.
Leicestershire got off to an inauspicious start, losing captain
Becki Brooker for a duck, and were 64-4 before Flora Davies’ composed 53 not out and Roff’s unbeaten 29 steered the side home.
It followed a thumping win the day before for the U18s.
Batting first, the Foxes posted 345-6 from their 50 overs, with Roff’s maiden century (104 from 83 balls) underpinning an impressive display with the bat.
Prisha Thanawala (56), Florence Conn (65) and Faith Teekasingh (44*) were also in the runs for Stephen Franklin’s side.
Thanawala continued her fine game in the field, taking 5-12 from five overs as Leicestershire dismissed Lincolnshire for just 42 runs to complete a whopping 303-run win.
South African-born Roff’s two showings with the ball so far this term have yielded 11 wickets at a miserly average of 3.73.
Her leg-spin, costing just 2.51 runs per over, have now accounted for 55 per cent of the team’s wickets at senior and U18 level.