Gardner, Sutherland and Edgar shine on action packed day in WBBL

At the Eastern Oval in Ballarat, Sydney Sixers won the toss and opted to bow first against the Hobart Hurricanes in the rain-affected match. The Hurricanes lost their captain early in the innings, but the South African duo of Lizelle Lee and Mignon du Preez helped Hurricanes get past 50. Ashleigh Gardner broke the back of the Hurricanes' innings with four wickets. Hurricanes imploded from 71 for three in the eighth over to 93 for eight at the end of the innings. Only Lee (24), du Preez (26), and Heather Graham (16) could score in the double digits as the Sixers needed 96 to register their fourth win of the season.

In the chase, the Sixers lost Alyssa Healy early for two as Hayley Jensen grabbed a sharp catch in the covers. Gardner joined Suzie Bates early in the chase and smashed 43 off 22 balls to swing the momentum in favor of the Sixers. The right-hander smashed three fours and as many sixes to take her close to the win. Maisy Gibson bowled her when the Sixers needed 37 runs to win, but Bates and Erin Burns led Sixers to an easy win with eight wickets in hand. Bates remained unbeaten on 25, while Burns scored 23 off just 14 balls.

In the second match of the day, Melbourne Stars' decision to bowl first worked well for them against the cross-town rivals, Melbourne Renegades. Kim Garth dismissed Sophie Molineux for a duck to give her side an early breakthrough. Georgia Prestwidge and Hayley Matthews tried to increase the scoring rate, but Sophie Day broke the budding partnership. Day and Annabel Sutherland took seven wickets between them as the Renegades were bowled out for 91 in the 19th over.

In pursuit of their first win of the WBBL, the Stars lost openers Jemimah Rodrigues and Lauren Winfield-Hill early in the chase. Sutherland took matters into her hand and added 47 runs for the third wicket partnership with England international Alice Capsey. The Stars lost Capsey and Garth in quick succession, but Sutherland remained unbeaten on 42 to seal the win by six wickets.

Also Read: The rise and rise of Ashleigh Gardner: Australia's stormbreaker

Brisbane Heat and Perth Scorchers met in a thriller at the Allan Field Road. Batting first, Perth Scorchers lost their openers early. The duo of Chloe Piparo (34) and Maddy Green (31) steadied the ship adding a fifty-run partnership. In the 12th over, Amelia Kerr affected the run out of Maddy Green, bringing the Heat back into the game. Soon after the Scorchers began losing wickets in clumps. However, Amy Edgar (36*) stood tall and led the scoring surge at the end, taking Scorchers to a total of 140. Brisbane Heat skipper Jessica Jonassen picked 3 for 22, becoming the leading wicket-taker in WBBL.

In the second innings, Brisbane Heat pushed Perth Scorchers from the beginning. Danielle Wyatt (34) led the scoring alongside Georgia Voll (28), before falling to Marizinna Kapp (2/23). Following, Heat’s batters started losing their wickets at regular intervals making it into an even contest. With 12 runs required in the final over, Indian all-rounder Pooja Vastraker (13*) and Jessica Jonessan (9*) tried hard to get their side over the line, but Scorchers clinched the contest. Lilly Mills was the pick of the bowlers for the home side taking 2 wickets for 19 runs.

Brief Scores:

Hobart Hurricanes 95/8 in 12 overs (Mignon du Preez 26; Ashleigh Gardner 4/23) lost to Sydney Sixers 96/2 in 10.5 overs (Ashleigh Gardner 43; Molly Strano 1/16) by eight wickets POTM: Ashleigh Gardner

Melbourne Renegades 91 all out in 19 overs (Hayley Matthews 24; Sophie Day 4/19, Annabel Sutherland 3/17) lost to Melbourne Stars 92/4 in 17. 3 overs (Annabel Sutherland 42*; Shabnim Ismail 4/15) by six wickets

Perth Scorchers 140/7 (Chloe Piparo 34, Maddy Green 31, Jessica Jonassen 3/22) defeated Brisbane Heat 137/7 (Danielle Wyatt 34, Georgia Voll 28, Lilly Mills 2/19) by 3 runs. POTM: Amy Edgar