Strikers hold off Sixers in WBBL thriller
A swashbuckling 71 off 38 balls from Sixers batter Erin Burns wasn't enough after Madeline Penna's cameo for Strikers
AAP
21-Oct-2022
Adelaide Strikers 6 for 142 (Penna 39*) beat Sydney Sixers 8 for 139 (Burns 71, Brown 3-17, Barsby 3-32)
Ellyse Perry's nightmare milestone match almost had a remarkable fairytale finish before the Adelaide Strikers held firm to post a three-run WBBL win over the Sydney Sixers.
Perry, playing her 100th match, got hammered for 0 for 34 off three overs as the Strikers posted a competitive 6 for 142.
In reply, Sixers looked dead and buried at 6 for 102 after 17 overs, needing 41 runs off the last 18 balls to secure victory.
That equation became an unlikely 20 off the last over, but Erin Burns (71 off 38 balls) upped the ante to get her side within a whisker of victory.
Burns cracked two sixes off the final Jemma Barsby over to make the equation four runs required off two balls. Barsby (3-32) then delivered a juicy full toss that should have been put away for four or six, but Burns mistimed her shot and was caught in the deep.
Needing four to win off the last ball, tailender Angelina Genford could only manage to get herself stumped, handing Strikers their first win of the season. Darcie Brown (3-17 off four overs) was the pick of the bowlers for Adelaide.
Perry was bowled by Brown for a golden duck during the run chase, and the result saw Sixers slip to a 3-1 record.
Earlier, Strikers were struggling 6 for 83 in the 16th over before Madeline Penna (39no off 25 balls) and Tegan McPharlin (21no off 11 balls) teed off.
Adelaide thumped 56 runs off the final three overs, with Perry's third over - the 19th of the innings - going for 18 runs.