The Sydney Sixers are in the box seat to finish second on the WBBL ladder after they bounced back from an embarrassing loss to the Stars two weeks ago.
The Sixers got their revenge with a timely 16-run win at Drummoyne Oval on Wednesday.
A fortnight after they were bowled out for 42 – the second-lowest total in tournament history – the women in magenta flipped the script against their Melbourne rivals, with Ellyse Perry setting the tone with a six off the second delivery.
While she was run out in the very next over, the Sixers exorcised their North Sydney Oval demons to reach 5-164 from their 20 overs.
Skipper Ash Gardner led the way with 50 off 31, and 3-31 with the ball.
It had been a lean tournament for the Aussie all-rounder, but she looked comfortable on a tricky deck and smashed eight boundaries to extend her side’s unbeaten run to four matches.
It was an extraordinary turnaround by the Sixers who took seven overs to surpass their total from two weeks ago, with that record loss proving to be a key turning point in their season.
The win sees them join the Stars on 11 competition points, but the Sixers have an extra game to play and will fancy their chances of booking a grand final qualifier on their home deck next week.
MAIA MAGIC
Meg Lanning was always going to be the key after the former Aussie skipper smashed a masterful 135 the last time the two teams met.
But she was starved of the strike in the opening five overs as the opener watched three of her teammates trudge back to the pavilion, with Rhys McKenna trapped in front on the second ball of the run chase.
Lanning copped a similar fate later in the innings when she was dismissed LBW by Gardner, but a stunning knock by Maia Bouchier in her first game of the tournament gave the Stars some hope when they looked dead and buried.
Bouchier was dropped on 30 by Gardner and then upped the ante with a six to bring up her 50 off 32, before she smashed 18 runs off the first four balls of the 15th over.
But her departure for 67 stalled the Stars’ momentum, with Melbourne finishing on 8-148 ahead of their final game of the season against the Thunder on Saturday.
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