WBBL 2021-22 – Perth Scorchers’ Alana King stuns Stars

Hamza Hameed November 10, 2021

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Stars crumble after winning the toss posting 9 for 97 then Beth Mooney hits half-century in rapid chase

Perth Scorchers 0 for 98 (Mooney 57*, Devine 35*) beat Melbourne Stars 9 for 97 (Garth 31, Devine 2-11, King 2-18) by 10 wickets

Perth Scorchers produced another sizzling bowling display to smash Melbourne Stars at Karen Rolton Oval and vault into second spot on the WBBL table.

For the second time in successive matches Scorchers bowled first and kept their opposition to a total under 100 with Alana King, Sophie Devine and Heather Graham each taking two wickets before Devine and Beth Mooney produced a flawless chase to run down the target of 98 with 9.1 overs to spare. Mooney finished 57 not out from 38 balls while Devine was unbeaten on 35.

Stars won the toss and elected to bat but capitulated after Meg Lanning chopped on in the second over. Annabel Sutherland fell for a duck before King knocked over Maia Bouchier and Elyse Villani with two superb deliveries to leave Stars struggling at 4 for 24. The legspinner bowled Bouchier around her legs after she moved across her stumps to sweep behind square. King then produced one of the deliveries of the tournament to remove Villani. From wide of the crease, she delivered a leg break that drifted in, pitched on middle, and spun past the edge to clip the top of off leaving Villani mystified as to how her forward defence had been breached.

It was left to the Stars lower order to try and post a defendable total. Not for the first time in this WBBL Kim Garth shouldered the responsibility making 31 from 31 to help lift the total to 9 for 97.

It was nowhere near enough as the WBBL’s best opening pair made light work of the chase clubbing 14 boundaries and a six to reach the target in 10.5 overs. Mooney made her third score of 50 plus for the tournament. Winning with 55 balls to spare made it the joint second-largest win chasing in WBBL history.

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