The Perth Scorchers will need to regroup quickly after falling heavily to the Brisbane Heat. Image: @ScorchersBBL
They got out of jail on Sunday winning the super over in their opening game of WBBL|07 but the Perth Scorchers have fallen straight back down to earth after being comprehensively beaten by the Brisbane Heat by 60 runs in the return game at Bellerive Oval.
After winning the bat flip and electing to bowl, the Scorchers struggled to break the opening partnership of Grace Harris (34) and Georgia Redmayne (59*).
Perth created plenty of chances in the field but uncharacteristically dropped three catches at crucial stages, including two right when the Heat started to accelerate the scoring rate, pushing the total to 5-162 after 20 overs.
Heather Graham was the pick of the bowlers, producing an outstanding 2-15 through her four overs.
The Scorchers struggled to put together a partnership of substance with the bat in hand. Losing wickets regularly throughout the innings and were eventually bowled out for 103, well short of the target in 17.2 overs.
Sophie Devine (18) and Graham (17) were the best with the bat on a disappointing night for the Scorchers.
Speaking post-game, Graham said the Scorchers weren’t up to the level required tonight and had plenty to improve on before they next take the field.
“We were definitely lacking a little tonight; the task now is to assess what we could have done better and work hard to improve next time.
“We thought 162 was a pretty good score but we believed we could chase it down, unfortunately, we just found ways to get out and struggled to build momentum”
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Graham, who was one of only a handful of Australian-based players who went over to the UK this year for the inaugural edition of “The Hundred’ is one of the leading players on the women’s domestic league circuit. Now into its seventh edition back home, despite the COVD challenges and restrictions, the WBBL continues to evolve and so does the talent that continues to emerge from Australia and around the world.
It’s a positive sign according to Graham, a competition where the notion of ‘Any Given Sunday’ rings true.
“The standard of the players in the WBBL is getting better every year, if you are slightly off your game it can be very difficult to win.
“We’re really looking forward to getting up to Launceston, it’s a great opportunity to bounce back quickly with two games this weekend.”
The Scorchers will travel to Launceston tomorrow ahead of weekend fixtures against the Melbourne Renegades and Sydney Thunder on Saturday and Sunday respectively at the UTAS Stadium.
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