Perth Scorchers kept their unbeaten start to WBBL|12 alive with a 17-run win over the Sydney Thunder, powered by Beth Mooney and Alana King, and moved to the top of the table.
Devine’s team-first decision
Sophie Devine made a team-first call to retire herself, which opened the way for Freya Kemp to bat at a critical stage. The Scorchers then smashed 47 runs off the last three overs to post 3-183.
Devine had been scratchy, scoring 42 off 39 balls, and had managed just 10 runs off her last 16 deliveries. The New Zealand veteran voluntarily ended her 39-ball innings, and England allrounder Kemp came in and crushed 30 off 10 balls.
Mooney and the bowlers
Skipper Beth Mooney was unbeaten on 80, bringing up her competition-record 49th half-century. Mooney explained the decision after the match.
“Sometimes when you’re batting, no matter how hard you try, it just doesn’t come off, and Soph recognised that,” Mooney said. “It’s hard watching a six-hitter walk off the field, but Freya came out and absolutely whacked it.”
The Scorchers restricted the Thunder to 166 in 19 overs. Chloe Ainsworth (2-24) struck with the first delivery of the Thunder’s innings, castling Georgia Voll, and then removed the dangerous Phoebe Litchfield for 34. Devine (2-31) stumped Heather Knight for 27 off her bowling, which left the visitors in control.
The hosts briefly threatened when Laura Harris (29) and Tahlia Wilson (25) blasted 35 runs off the two-over power surge. Champion leg-spinner Alana King (4-35) was then brought back and destroyed the lower order.
Scorchers bowler and Pakistan captain Fatima Sana went off the ground sore during the second innings but returned to see out the match.
What’s next
The Scorchers now sit clear at the top of the table, holding an extra game and a win in hand over the Sydney Sixers. They face the Melbourne Stars next in a rematch of Monday’s low-scoring, tight contest. The Stars will be looking for revenge after losing their last meeting by 15 runs.
The Sydney Thunder play their cross-town rivals, the Sydney Sixers, in a derby at North Sydney Oval on Sunday.