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In today’s cricket briefing, your daily wrap of news
- Adelaide have made a sensational, record-breaking start to their WBBL title defence, dismissing the Melbourne Stars for just 29 on their way to a crushing 148-run win at Karen Rolton Oval.
- England slipped to a team record 229-run one-day international loss that leaves their World Cup semi-final hopes hanging by a thread.
Melbourne Stars slump to record low total in WBBL loss
Adelaide have made a sensational, record-breaking start to their WBBL title defence, dismissing the Melbourne Stars for just 29 on their way to a crushing 148-run win at Karen Rolton Oval.
Alice Capsey departs for 2. No Stars player made double figures.Credit: Getty Images
Put in to bat, the Strikers smashed their way to 3-177, with openers Katie Mack (86 off 50 balls) and Laura Woolvardt (47 off 36) blasting 135 off 14.1 overs.
Melbourne, who won their opening game on Thursday, were dismissed in just 9.3 overs and 37 runs short of the tournament’s previous lowest total.
No Star made double figures with Sophia Dunkley top-scoring with nine, and nine of the batters were dismissed for three or less.
Megan Schutt (3-3 off three overs), Amanda-Jade Wellington (3-4 off two) and Zimbabwe legspinner Anesu Mushangwe (2-12 off two) ripped through the batting line-up to leave the visitors reeling at 8-18 in the seventh over.
Captain Tahlia McGrath (2-2 off 1.3) picked up the last two wickets to complete the embarrassingly one-sided game.
The previous biggest winning margin was the Sydney Sixers’ 103-run victory over the Hobart Hurricanes.
“We started unreal with the bat with Katie and Laura and then with the ball as well with Mushy [Mushangwe] and Shooter [Schutt], so very happy,” McGrath told Fox Sports.
“A perfect start but it’s a long tournament it’s a really tough tournament, so we’re going to have to be at our best for the next six weeks.”
The Strikers’ openers feasted on some poor bowling, notching at least one boundary in each of the first nine overs.
Mack took 11 off the first Kim Garth over, slashing a couple of boundaries backward of point and scored 49 of her team’s first 55 runs.
She struck 10 fours in her first 50, consistently smashing back-of-a-length deliveries to the leg side boundary.
Left-arm finger spinner Sophie Day (3-24 off four) temporarily dragged her team back into the match.
She had Woolvardt caught at long on and three balls later Mack was stumped by Nicole Faltum.
Day also had Bridget Patterson caught, but McGrath (34 not out off 19) produced some powerful hitting in the closing overs.
Melbourne’s reply was catastrophic with the visitors playing a series of loose shots and providing the Strikers with catching practice.
Captain Meg Lanning fell to Schutt in the second over for one, and Mushangwe removed England stars Dunkley and Alice Capsey in the third and the innings never recovered.
AAP
England slump to record loss, leaving semi-final hopes in tatters
England’s decision to bowl first against South Africa in stifling conditions in Mumbai was a self-inflicted wound as they slipped to a team record 229-run one-day international loss that leaves their World Cup semi-final hopes hanging by a thread.
The defending champions won the toss and selected to bowl, but toiled in the heat and humidity and allowed South Africa to amass 399 in their 50 overs.
“It’s incredibly disappointing, we came here with high hopes to play our best cricket and we were short of that and well beaten,” England captain Jos Buttler said.
A loss to South Africa has left England’s World Cup hopes hanging by a thread.Credit: Getty Images
“Potentially we should have batted first with the heat. You always look back on the decisions you made. It was incredibly tough conditions, we saw that with the boys in the field.”
England made a good start, removing South African opener Quinton de Kock with the second ball of the innings, but when tall seamer Reece Topley had to leave the field with an injured finger, the game changed.
“Throughout the first innings lots of things didn’t go to plan,” Buttler said. “We started nicely and then Reece picked up that injury. We then had the unknown of whether he was going to come back [and bowl], so we tried to fiddle a few overs in.
“I thought if we could have restricted them to 340-350, probably on this pitch it would have been a really good chase. They just got away from us at the end.”
England slipped to 6-68 in their reply as they tried to force the pace in the face of some disciplined South African bowling.
“We needed to get off to a good start, but the ball did a bit and we had a couple of [unfortunate] dismissals, caught down the leg side and caught at leg slip.
“When those things start happening you feel like the writing is on the wall,” Buttler said.
England have now lost three of their opening four games of the tournament ahead of their next game against Sri Lanka on Thursday.
“It leaves us with no room for error, we probably have to win every game from here on in,” Buttler said.
Reuters
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