12,000 spectators treated to Big Bash blockbuster at Adelaide Oval

Adelaide Strikers are crowned champions of the 2023 Women’s Big Bash League. Photo credit: WBBL via X (No copyright intended).

The Women’s Big Bash League Final between the Adelaide Strikers and Brisbane Heat delivered a final-ball thriller in front of an enthusiastic crowd of 12,000 on Saturday night, with the Strikers coming out on top by just three runs.

Heat bowlers on fire

Brisbane Heat made the WBBL Final after winning two previous knockout matches, possibly a legacy of the experience they’ve had from being at the finals for 6 consecutive seasons. They’ve not quite had the success of Adelaide though, the reigning champions were in the Grand Final for the third consecutive year.

The Strikers won the toss and elected to bat. Since they are the most economical fielders (conceding 6.47 runs per over up until the final) it plays to their strengths, and it prevents Heat from exploiting their tournament-topping batting lineup. However, it was Brisbane’s bowlers who stepped up.

Katie Mack was the highest run scorer for the Strikers this season, and so when she misjudged the bounce of Nicola Hancock’s delivery on just the eighth ball of the innings, Heat knew it was a big moment.

But Strikers captain Tahlia McGrath wasn’t going to let it affect her team. She ended the second over by firing another Hancock fast ball to the boundary, giving Adelaide a platform to steadily bolster their score in front of the home crowd.

The setting sun on Saturday night caused a couple of misfields, and the Strikers were in control towards halfway. But it was Nicola Hancock again, this time in the tenth over, who removed captain McGrath for 38.

This slowed the run rate dramatically, so Laura Wolvaardt attempted to reverse this by marching down the pitch at Jess Jonassen’s spin delivery, only to be stumped by Georgia Redmayne. Bridget Patterson was next to try, only to find her shot caught by Grace Harris.

Heat could’ve had Madeline Penna too, but Amelia Kerr overran the catch slightly and would drop Penna, leaving her and Courtney Sippel to salvage a decent final two overs, with a few wides helping them along the way. By all accounts, a low total to chase, and the Adelaide Strikers may be the only team in the whole competition capable of defending it.

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A chase of twists and turns

The required run rate of 6.3 for the Brisbane Heat is not logically daunting to the best batting side in the league, but the WBBL Final is not a logical game of Cricket. Grace Harris’ early aggression did satisfy expectation, and Georgia Redmayne’s quiet but necessary contributions filled in the gaps.

Madeline Penna had a difficult opportunity at 1^st slip to remove Harris but couldn’t take the catch, leaving Harris to bring up 500 tournament runs on the next ball. However, the introduction of spin in the fifth over would change the game.

First, a slowing run rate, then the huge wicket of Grace Harris. The right hander didn’t quite get hold of Jemma Barsby’s ball and Katie Mack was the comfortable catch-taker.

Redmayne was removed two overs later by Amanda Jade-Wellington, who had only conceded five runs in two overs. The Strikers had done well to break the opening partnership, leaving Heat requiring cool heads as well as runs.

Despite the fact that the Brisbane Heat had four batters who had scored more than 300 runs in the tournament so far, the pressure was on them again, and they couldn’t deliver. Just as another partnership was starting to form, Mignon du Preez exposed her stumps to be bowled playing a mistimed shot, and then Laura Harris would be a victim of an excellent Tahlia McGrath Yorker next ball.

The captain had stepped up again. Amelia Kerr was now the key, and put on a great showing.

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Charlie Knott partnered her well, but her removal on 20 looked more desperation than calculation. The pressure-cooker was turned up further when Jess Jonassen was bowled, and Georgia Voll came into the final over on strike, needing 13 runs.

Two singles and Voll’s removal was far from the ideal start, but there was to be another twist, as Mikayla Hinkley (in as replacement for Bess Heath on international duty) smashed her first ball for six. Her second ball was also clobbered to the sky, but this time caught on the rope by Barsby.

In the end, it was too much to expect a boundary on Nicola Hancock’s first ball at the crease, and the Strikers would hang on by the barest of margins.

It would be easy to say that Brisbane’s batters failed to quite live up to their reputation, but the Strikers varied bowling attack deserve credit too. Wellington will get the plaudits, but Darcie Brown’s economical overs, including a crucial 18^th, can’t be ignored.

It was T20 Cricket at its best, every ball changing the momentum of the game, and just as the Strikers thought they had it, Brisbane nearly snatched it away from them. But it’s Adelaide who will start their second consecutive season as reigning champions during the WBBL’s 10^th season in 2024.