The Melbourne Stars have a not-so-secret weapon in an in-form Meg Lanning.
The champion batter crunched 90 not out to steer the Stars to their first win of the WBBL season over the Perth Scorchers at Karen Rolton Oval on Friday.
Lanning’s near century followed a chanceless fifty that was only undone by an unfortunate run out on Monday.
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The Stars’ 4-173 — which was revised to 95 off nine overs after rain over the innings break — was eventually a task too great for the Scorchers.
Lanning started slowly but accelerated rapidly once she took the power surge.
She took down World Cup conqueror Alana King (0-29 off three overs) who is still battling a finger niggle.
Scorchers vs Stars – WBBL Highlights | 13:46
Lanning hit 10 fours and three powerful sixes in her 55-ball stay at the crease.
Amy Jones (30 off 32 balls) and Annabel Sutherland (17 off 11) looked ominous but they were both support acts to the firing Lanning.
Lanning modestly said she “started a bit slow” at the innings break.
“The surge, sometimes I like the surge and sometimes I don’t, but today it gave me no choice but to go a little bit harder and find the rope a bit more,” she told the broadcast.
The Scorchers were keeping up with the run rate early but lost a wicket across five consecutive overs.
The Stars and Scorchers now jet to Melbourne where they will respectively take on the Melbourne Renegades and Adelaide Strikers on Sunday.
THE BIG WICKET
The innings of Beth Mooney was always going to determine the result.
Kim Garth captured the wicket of her in-form national teammate after she made another hot start.
The Scorchers opener, fresh off a century on Wednesday, raced to 14 off six balls with three boundaries before Garth grabbed the breakthrough.
Garth crashed into the stumps and slashed the Scorchers’ hopes of a famous run chase.
LIMITING LILLY
A sublime over from Scorcher Lilly Mills denied Meg Lanning of a deserved century.
Mills had already taken the crucial wicket of Annabel Sutherland but it was her set in the 18th over which hurt Lanning and the Stars the most.
Lanning was on a heater, hitting 17 off the previous over and motoring into the 80s when Mills removed Marizanne Kapp and strangled the strike.
She was even able to restrict new batter Danielle Gibson to a single on the final ball of the over and keep Lanning away from the strike for another ball.
Mills held the Stars to just six runs in the final over the of the innings on her way to 2-22 off four.
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