Danni Wyatt-Hodge produced one of the most commanding knocks of her Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) career as the Hobart Hurricanes completed the highest successful WBBL run chase, overhauling Sydney Thunder’s 181/8 at Allan Border Field with three balls to spare.
What made the innings even more remarkable was that Wyatt-Hodge had no idea how many runs she had scored or how close her team was to victory, revealing after the match, “I couldn’t even see the score at any point on the screen.”
Despite entering WBBL 11 after a difficult previous season where she managed only 125 runs from 7 matches at an average of 17.85, her worst across her six WBBL campaigns, Wyatt-Hodge looked completely transformed as she hammered a career-best 90 off 52 balls, striking nine fours and three sixes.
Her innings not only powered the Hurricanes to a clinical six-wicket win but also marked her highest-ever WBBL score from 76 matches, surpassing her previous best of 87 from her standout 2019 season with the Melbourne Renegades when she accumulated 468 runs from 14 matches.
Sydney Thunder had earlier built a strong first-innings total through contributions across the order. The Hurricanes’ bowlers fought hard to prevent the innings from completely exploding. In the chase, Hobart lost early wickets, but once Wyatt-Hodge settled, the momentum shifted decisively.
Her authority at the crease was matched perfectly by Nicola Carey, and together they crafted a superb 143-run partnership off 81 balls — a new record for the Hurricanes, surpassing the previous mark of 133 held by Carey and Lizelle Lee from last season.
Carey finished unbeaten on 58 off 43, hitting seven boundaries and steering the chase with calm precision even as the Hurricanes briefly faltered in the final over with the loss of two late wickets, including Wyatt-Hodge who holed out off Samantha Bates. Despite those hiccups, Hobart eased to 182/4, maintaining complete control of the chase.
Wyatt-Hodge later explained that she focused entirely on her natural game rather than the scoreboard around her, saying, “I tried to just bat basically, and if it was there just try to hit my strengths … and keep being brave.” She also credited the ease of batting alongside Carey, adding, “It was really good fun batting out there with ‘Nic’ (Carey) who was hitting the ball very sweetly from ball one.”
The Hurricanes now head to Sydney for their next match at North Sydney Oval against the Sixers, who themselves opened their WBBL 11 campaign with a commanding 10-wicket win powered by Ashleigh Gardner.
(Quotes sourced from cricket.com.au)
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