Wolvaardt, bowlers pick up first win for Strikers
The Adelaide Strikers got their WBBL campaign off the ground with a seven-wicket win over the Melbourne Renegades at the Karen Rolton Oval in Adelaide.
Asked to bat first, the Renegades got off to a modest start and lost Davina Perrin early. Courtney Webb, who appeared to be in good touch, salvaged the PowerPlay by hitting Megan Schutt for nine runs in the fourth over. Alice Capsey, who had gotten off to a decent start having struck three boundaries, fell to Tahlia McGrath in the sixth over and she was followed by Deandra Dottin who was run-out a couple of overs later.
Georgia Wareham joined Webb at the crease and the duo managed to stitch a crucial 47-run stand before the latter was dismissed four runs short of her fifty in the 13th over. The Renegades' innings failed to gather momentum as they continued to lose regular wickets. Wareham's dismissal at the end of the 16th over left them on 113/6 before they tottered along to 141/9 in 20 overs.
In reply, the Strikers' openers started off positively and put on a 63-run partnership. Smart rotation of strike and timely boundaries meant that the Strikers always remained ahead of the contest. Wareham managed to dismiss Tammy Beaumont in the eighth over after being struck for two boundaries but the Renegades struggled to contain Laura Wolvaardt who continued to cruise along. The South African batted along unfazed even as she lost two more partners and brought up her fifty in the 14th over. She remained unbeaten on 71 as Bridget Patterson struck a boundary to seal victory for the Strikers in the 18th over.
Brief scores: Melbourne Renegades 141/9 in 20 overs (Courtney Webb 46, Georgia Wareham 30; Sophie Ecclestone 2-24, Darcie Brown 2-24) lost to Adelaide Strikers 143/3 in 17.4 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 71*, Tammy Beaumont 34; Tess Flintoff 2-27) by 7 wickets
Meg Lanning's 55-ball 90 in her 100th WBBL match helped Melbourne Stars to a 16-run victory in a rain-affected match in South Australia, their first win of the season. Lanning hit 10 fours and 3 sixes as she put up half-century stands with Amy Jones and Annabel Sutherland for the second and third wickets respectively. Stars got up to 173/4 in their 20 overs but with rain around, the second innings was reduced to nine overs, with the adjusted target for Perth Scorchers being 95.
Come the chase, regular wickets hampered Scorchers as they finished 78 for 8. Kim Garth's strike of Beth Mooney in the second over was critical and Scorchers kept losing wickets thereafter, including three in the seventh over bowled by Sophie Day. Garth finished with two wickets.
Brief Scores: Melbourne Stars 173/4 (Lanning 90*; Lilly Mills 2-22) beat Perth Scorchers 78/8 in 9 overs (Mooney 14; Sophie Day 3-7) by 16 runs (DLS)
