Records are meant to be broken. In recent times, though a record may not have been broken, yet it is on the brink of being breached.
Ellyse Perry became the second highest run-getter in the history of the Women’s Premier League, falling short of her compatriot Meg Lanning by a handful of runs. Australia’s legendary all-rounder Ellyse Perry has entered the history books and further cemented her legacy in franchise cricket by surpassing 700 runs in the tournament.
Perry scored an innings-defining 81 against the Mumbai Indians at a time when her team was in deep trouble. The innings consisted of 11 fours and 2 maximums which were registered at a stupendous strike-rate of 188.37.
The 34-year old’s fine feat is a testament to her art of dominating in India-based franchise cricket, seamlessly translating her international prowess on subcontinent pitches as well. Her ability to switch gears within a blink of an eye, play both aggressive and demanding innings, and deliver under crunch situations has made her one of the finest players to have ever blessed the game with their prowess.
In the season of 2024, Perry was at her absolute best – milking 347 runs in 9 innings with a stupendous average of 69. While during the ongoing series, Perry has marked 145 runs in 3 innings, she is unleashing her best with every encounter. For the moment, Perry is playing as a specialist batter and has taken rest from bowling owing to her recent hip injury in the conceded multi-format Ashes series.
Across three seasons, she has accumulated runs with sheer comfort and consistency, blending astute brilliance with nonchalance power-hitting to tackle a variety of bowling attacks.
Beyond her remarkable performances with the bat, she also carved out a place in history with a sensational bowling spell of 4-0-15-6 against the Mumbai Indians in 2024— the best bowling figures ever recorded in WPL history.
Talking about her international accolades, Perry has won 8 world championship titles- which includes two ODI World Cups and six T20 World Cups.
With runs coming thick and fast for Perry, the race to grab the top spot gets intriguing. While she currently holds the second position, her form suggests that she could soon challenge the record for being the most accomplished batter in the history of Women’s Premier League, if not already.
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