Chamari show rolls on as Thunder make big statement

Sydney Thunder have strengthened their credentials as a team to beat in Weber WBBL|09 after cruising to a nine-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars.

After a disciplined bowling display led by Hannah Darlington (2-13) restricted the Stars to 5-123 at Casey Fields, Chamari Athapaththu went berserk in the chase, hammering 69 from 40 deliveries.

She fell with her team five runs shy of victory, but the damage was done as the Thunder reeled in their target with 7.1 overs to spare.

The Thunder now have four wins from five matches and sit level on eight points with the three others sides who make up the top four – Adelaide Strikers, Perth Scorchers and Brisbane Heat.

The task of keeping pace with that leading pack is all the more difficult now for Melbourne Stars, who sit in sixth at the halfway point of their tournament with two wins from seven matches.

In stark contrast to the Stars’ batters, who made difficult work of finding the boundary on their way to 5-123, Athapaththu looked right at home, hitting a quartet of fours to help the Thunder to 0-33 at the end of the power play.

Opening partner Tahlia Wilson (45no from 33) took longer to settle, but after reaching 18 from the first 17 balls she faced she too found her groove as the Thunder raced to 0-82 after 10 overs.

Then, Athapaththu flicked the switch.

Calling for the Power Surge, she took the long handle to Sasha Moloney, smashing three fours and two sixes from five legal deliveries and reaching her third fifty of WBBL|09 in the process.

Her barrage ended when she looked to finish the match with a maximum only to hole out in the deep, but it mattered little as Phoebe Litchfield sealed victory with a six of her own.

Meg Lanning had opted to bat first as the WBBL returned to the outer eastern Melbourne venue for the first time since December 2018.

Early pressure built up by the Thunder new-ball combo of Athapaththu and Marizanne Kapp paid off as Sophie Reid (1) took off for a single that could only be described as ambitious and was duly run out via a direct hit from Darlington.

Having scrapped her way to 17, Lanning survived a close lbw shout off the bowling of Darlington – but nonetheless had to depart after she took a few steps down the pitch, was sent back by non-striker Alice Capsey but couldn’t make her ground before Claire Moore threw down the stumps.

Capsey joined her captain back to the sheds shortly after, bowled by Darlington on 17, and Maia Bouchier’s recent lean run was extended when she was out lbw next ball.

Coming together at 4-41 Sophia Dunkley and Annabel Sutherland dug in for a 74-run stand, but boundaries remained hard to come by, outside of one Sam Bates over during the Power Surge when the latter clubbed back-to-back fours.

Dunkley found the boundary just twice in her 35-ball 34 before she holed out in the final over.

Rhys McKenna managed as many from the only two deliveries she faced – both coming via edges that raced away to the boundary – while Sutherland finished unbeaten on 42 from 39.

The Stars remain at home where they will play Sydney Sixers in Ringwood on Wednesday, while the Thunder head home to play the Heat at North Sydney Oval on Monday evening.

Weber WBBL|09 Standings

Team	Matches played M	Wins W	Losses L	Ties T	No results N/R	Net Run Rate NRR	Deductions Ded.	Total points PTS
1 Adelaide Strikers Women STR	14	11	3	0	0	1.154	0	22
2 Perth Scorchers Women SCO	14	8	6	0	0	0.784	0	16
3 Brisbane Heat Women HEA	14	8	6	0	0	0.203	0	16
4 Sydney Thunder Women THU	14	7	6	0	1	0.298	0	15
5 Sydney Sixers Women SIX	14	7	7	0	0	-0.253	0	14
6 Hobart Hurricanes Women HUR	14	6	7	0	1	-0.597	0	13
7 Melbourne Stars Women STA	14	6	8	0	0	-0.779	0	12
8 Melbourne Renegades Women REN	14	2	12	0	0	-0.978	0	4

Legend

M: Matches played

W: Wins

L: Losses

T: Ties

N/R: No results

NRR: Net Run Rate

Ded.: Deductions

PTS: Total points