Skipper Tahlia McGrath, and Madeline Penna stepped up to bring the Adelaide Strikers back to winning ways courtesy of a comprehensive 38-run victory against the Hobart Hurricanes at the Adelaide Oval in match no. 29 of the ongoing 2024-25 Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL).
The Melbourne Stars led by skipper Annabel Sutherland were up against Brisbane Heat led by skipper Jess Jonassen at a neutral venue at the Drummoyne Oval, Sydney, in the 30th match of the WBBL.
Lucy Hamilton’s five-fer restricted Melbourne Stars to 138
The Melbourne Stars openers skipper Annabel Sutherland and wicket-keeper batter Yastika Bhatia got their side off to a steady start with a 31-run opening partnership after the Brisbane Heat skipper Jess Jonassen inserted them to bat first after winning the toss. The 18-year-old left-arm pacer, Lucy Hamilton struck twice in the 5th over of the innings to send both the openers back to the pavilion.
The Stars failed to form a substantial partnership as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals and as a result, they were eventually bundled out for 138 losing their last 8 wickets for just 106 runs. Kim Garth (31* off 20 balls), skipper Annabel Sutherland (21 off 18 balls), Rhys McKenna (20 off 15 balls), and Maisy Gibson (15 off 11 balls) played a crucial role with the bat in helping the Stars post a respectable total on the board.
Lucy Hamilton (4-1-8-5) triggered the Stars collapse alongside Shikha Pandey (4-0-31-2), and Grace Parsons (4-0-28-1) with the ball for the Brisbane Heat.
Jemimah Rodrigues and Charli Knott led the Brisbane Heat’s reply
Grace Harris departed cheaply in their attempt to chase down the 139-run target with Kim Garth providing the first breakthrough for the Melbourne Stars. Wicket-keeper batter Georgia Redmayne was joined by Jemimah Rodrigues at the crease and the duo took their side past the 50-run mark, courtesy of a vital 39-run 2nd wicket stand. A run-out ended wicket-keeper batter Georgia Redmayne’s stay at the crease.
Charli Knott joined Jemimah Rodrigues at the crease and the pair took the fizz out of the run chase with a brisk 51-run 3rd wicket partnership. Skipper Annabel Sutherland cleaned up Jemimah Rodrigues to provide the 3rd breakthrough for the Melbourne Stars. Brisbane Heat eventually got over the line with 6 wickets in hand and 15 balls to spare. Jemimah Rodrigues (45 off 31 balls), Charli Knott (35* off 36 balls), skipper Jess Jonassen (17* off 11 balls), and Laura Harris (10 off 5 balls) were the stand-out performers with the bat for the Brisbane Heat.
Skipper Annabel Sutherland (4-0-27-1), Kim Garth (3-0-21-1), and Marizanne Kapp (4-0-35-0) were the pick of the bowlers for the Melbourne Stars.
18-year-old Lucy Hamilton, who broke the back of the Melbourne Stars batting line-up, was awarded the Player of the Match for her exceptional spell of 4-1-8-5, playing a crucial role in helping Brisbane Heat complete a hattrick of victories to climb to the 3rd spot in the points table.
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