Meg Lanning made a spectacular return to the WBBL to help the Stars stun the Sixers by two runs in a thriller at North Sydney Oval which saw Ash Gardner threaten to pull off an improbable run chase which came down to the final ball.
Playing her first WBBL game in nearly two years, Lanning set the tone early with a sparkling 55 off 34 deliveries to help the Stars reach 8/165 from their 20 overs in the season opener, with Annabel Sutherland chipping in with 34 off 22.
The Stars skipper missed last season due to personal reasons and didn’t feature in the Ashes series because of an undisclosed medical issue, but she has been in stunning form since returning with three half-centuries in the WNCL.
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Calls will only grow louder for her to make her international return in December when Australia tours India on the back of her form in North Sydney which included a casual pull shot over square leg for six in the third over.
She reached her 50 off just 28 deliveries before she was eventually knocked over by Sixers all-rounder Ash Gardner, but the damage was already done.
The Stars missed the finals last year but will fancy their chances this season with a well-balanced bowling attack which features Milly Illingworth who bowled pure heat on Thursday night.
It was an eye-catching debut from the 18-year-old who had Kate Pelle trapped in front in her first over.
There was late drama with what may have been a wide on the final ball not called.
“It was (close),” Gardner told reporters after the match.
“When we rewatched it, we were like, ‘Surely that’s got to be a wide.’
“But we shouldn’t have got it to that point. We should have iced it earlier in the game. You can’t expect our lower-order to come in and score those pivotal runs. It’s batters like myself that probably need to stand up and stay there until the end.”
DRS DELIGHT
Don’t be stunned if Lanning sends a Christmas card to Cricket Australia bosses as well as the broadcasters after she was given a second life thanks to the DRS.
The Stars skipper was given out caught behind on 12 in the third over but immediately challenged the call, with replays showing a huge gap between bat and ball.
Lanning made the most of the reprieve and hit Lauren Cheatle for consecutive boundaries.
The DRS was brought in for 24 WBBL matches last season and will again be in use this year for some matches, with an extra 10 games next season set to feature the review system in a huge boost to ensuring the correct call is made on the field.
GARDNER GOES BIG
They lost just two games in the regular season on their way to the WBBL final last year, but the Sixers have some work to do if they want to match those lofty heights after they dropped their home opener on Thursday night.
Last season’s beaten finalists did well to restrict the Stars with Gardner and Lauren Cheatle each picking up two wickets, but the Sixers left themselves too much to do after they slumped to 6-71.
The Sixers looked set to suffer a heavy defeat but Gardner showed why she’s the highest-paid female cricketer with a scintillating 72 off 44 as she and Maitlan Brown (35 off 22) threatened to produce a stunning result.
But both set batters fell to Annabel Sutherland (4-27) who swung momentum back Melbourne’s way, with the Sixers unable to chase down eight off the final over. Thankfully for them skipper Ellyse Perry will return from suspension for the Sydney Smash on Sunday.
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