The national domestic 50 overs competition in Australia for women’s cricket, the Women’s National Cricket League (WNCL), came to an end with seven teams competing to claim the title. Eventually, Tasmania established their win over Queensland, completing a mission – threepeat.
Tasmania won 9 matches out of 12 matches with 43 points and were at the top of the table, on the other hand, Queensland won 8 matches out of 12 to compete in the finals. It was Tasmania’s third consecutive WNCL championship title.
Queensland skipper Georgia Redmayne won the toss and elected to bat first in the final of the Women’s National Cricket League (WNCL) at the Bellerive Oval, Hobart.
Queensland got off to a steady start with their opening pair of Georgia Redmayne and Georgia Voll putting up a partnership of 52 runs before skipper Redmayne was dismissed for 23 runs caught behind by Manix Geeves off Sasha Moloney’s bowling.
Lauren Smith caught and bowled Georgia Voll at 33 runs and despite losing a couple of quick wickets, Queensland’s middle order contributed well with Lauren Winfield Hill, Mikayla Hinkley, and Charli Knott playing crucial innings to contribute to the scoreboard. Knott’s aggressive knock of 73 runs off 61 balls was the highlight of the innings.
Tasmania’s strong bowling saw them restrict Queensland’s scoring, with Heather Graham being the standout bowler, claiming three important wickets. Nicola Carey and Lauren Smith provided valuable breakthroughs as Queensland’s lower-order batters Ruth Johnston, Lucy Hamilton, and Courtney Grace Sippel played vital cameos to propel the team’s total to 248 runs for the loss of 7 wickets in their allotted 50 overs.
Tasmania in reply lost their opener Lizelle Lee cheaply for just 1 run, lbw by Voll. Elyse Villani followed soon after departing for 32 runs, lbw to Hancock. These early blows put pressure on Tasmania’s batting lineup putting 50/2 on the scoreboard. Nicola Carey played a sensational innings, anchoring Tasmania’s chase with a brilliant century. Her unbeaten knock of 111 runs off 135 balls guided Tasmania to victory. Carey’s innings were characterized by skill, proper timing with the bat, and calculated aggression.
Heather Graham played a crucial supporting role scoring a brisk 63 runs off 75 deliveries. Her partnership with Carey laid the foundation for Tasmania’s successful run chase. Queensland’s bowlers struggled to contain Tasmania’s batting lineup after a successful start. Georgia Voll was the most successful bowler for Queensland picking up three wickets, however, the rest of the bowling unit failed to make significant breakthroughs allowing Tasmania to chase down the target comfortably by 6 wickets with 14 balls to spare as Emma Manix Geeves remained unbeaten on 28 runs.
Overall, it was a thrilling encounter with Tasmania emerging victorious, highlighting Nicola Carey’s magnificent century and Heather Graham’s valuable contribution with the bat.