WBBL: Silver-Holmes, Lee shine as Hurricanes breeze past Sixers

Hobart Hurricanes had won just two of their 20 previous encounters against the Sydney Sixers in WBBL history. Their third win, at the North Sydney Oval today, came at a canter following a dominant all-round performance that left an early-season scar on their vaunted opponents, who endured a poor home record last year.

The architects of the Hurricanes' second win of the season were two players at opposite ends of the experience spectrum - 22-year-old Hayley Silver-Holmes and veteran South African keeper-batter Lizelle Lee. Silver-Holmes returned figures of 3 for 18, all three wickets coming in one dramatic over that saw the Sixers collapse from a commanding 92 for 2 to 93 for 5.

The hosts had lost Sophia Dunkley early, but the experienced pair of Ellyse Perry and Alyssa Healy steadied the innings with a 44-run stand. Ash Gardner struggled to find rhythm before falling to Silver-Holmes for a 13-ball 9. Off the very next delivery, Silver-Holmes landed an off-cutter on a hard length, finding just enough seam movement to breach Amelia Kerr's defence. Three balls later, an identical delivery knocked over Healy for 37, and when Erin Burns departed in the next over, the Sixers were in a tailspin.

To their credit, they managed to reach 152, largely thanks to Maitlan Brown's 29. Mady Villiers, who received an early stumping reprieve, added a useful 19.

But the total didn't demand much sweat from the Hurricanes once they posted their highest opening partnership in WBBL history. Lee and Danni Wyatt-Hodge added 95 in just 9.1 overs, with the latter smashing six fours and two sixes in her 26-ball 45. From there, it was a routine stroll to the finish line, with Lee falling for a 33-ball 55. The Hurricanes cruised home with 19 balls to spare.

Brief Scores: Sydney Sixers 152/9 (Alyssa Healy 37; Hayley Silver-Holmes 3-18) lost to Hobart Hurricanes 154/4 in 16.5 overs (Lizelle Lee 55, Dani Wyatt-Hodge 45; Caoimhe Bray 2-17) by six wickets