Match no. 26 in the ongoing 8th edition of the Women’s Big Bash League (W-BBL) had action return to the North Sydney Oval for the first time since 2019 with Melbourne Stars playing Adelaide Strikers. As the play unfolded, an absolute delight of an innings from Victorian, Tess Flintoff helped her side, Melbourne Stars register a commanding win.
Melbourne Stars batting first had Lauren Winfield-Hill start well, but lost her opening partner, Jemimah Rodrigues on 8(7) with 24 on board. Winfield-Hill had started aggressively, but lost touch and Alice Capsey from the other and did well in injecting life into the play. The English duo got the sides total edge past the 100 mark in the 13th over and just then, the 81-run stand between the two saw curtains with the wicket of Capsey on 49(31). Annabel Sutherland soon followed with an 8 to her name and shortly after had Winfield-Hill too walk back on the score of 47(49).
Tess Flintoff just surpassed Ashleigh Gardner’s previous record of the fastest fifty in WBBL🔥🔥
She smashed 51* in just 16 Balls. #CricketTwitter #WBBL08 pic.twitter.com/Dd37W4EoP3
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) November 2, 2022
Tess Flintoff walked in following Sutherland’s dismissal with the sides scorecard reading, 115/3 (15.2). Tess got off the mark with back-to-back boundaries and teed off as she soon bettered her boundaries shots, with a couple of maximums. A few boundaries helped her get to 45 and she then, off the last ball, topped her boundary shots with a maximum that saw her edge past her fifty (51*) off just 16 balls and in the process, scripted history with the fastest fifty in the W-BBL history.
Tess Flintoff is only behind Pat Cummins (14 balls) and Dan Christian (15 balls) on the fastest-to-fifty list across both male and female cricketers. The star-studded Strikers’ lineup featuring Meghan Schutt, Darcie Brown, Amanda Jade Wellington and Deandra Dottin couldn’t restrict Tess from teeing as her 16-ball-51* powered Stars’ to finish on 186/5.
51* in just 16 Balls
Yet another shining star from Australia has created a World Record.
Remember her name: Tess Flintoff #CricketTwitter #WBBL08 pic.twitter.com/YK2PdLrbm9
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) November 2, 2022
Adelaide Strikers in reply lost Deandra Dottin early on the score of 3(7) with 5 on board and opener, Katie Mack was then partnered by Laura Wolvaardt. The two got going well and their 62-run stand came to a close with the wicket of Wolvaardt on 30(24). Tahlia McGrath’s poor run of form continued as she followed with a 1 against her name and Katie Mack then had a brief partnership alongside Bridget Patterson before departing on 47(38) with 93 on board at the start of the 13th over. Bridget Patterson’s intentful start was matched by Madeline Penna, but couldn’t save the day for Strikers as they departed on respective scores of 41(23) and 22(16). A wicket off the last ball saw Strikers lose 8 in closing out on 164.
Melbourne Stars’ won the contest by 22 runs and Tess Flintoff after impacting with the bat, did so a little with the ball as well. She didn’t have the best of the days with the ball, but still managed to bag a wicket off the couple overs she delivered.
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