A six-wicket win against the Sydney Thunder in front of their home fans at Karen Rolton Oval has rocketed them back up to second on the Weber WBBL|09 standings with four matches remaining.
After winning the toss and choosing to field, it was the bowling innings that set up the win for the Strikers.
An outstanding double wicket maiden in the third over by Anesu Mushangwe got the bowling innings off to a brilliant start as she removed Tahlia Wilson for single figures and Phoebe Litchfield for a duck.
Spin was the way to go in the first 10 overs, with Jemma Barsby picking up the next crucial wicket of Thunder captain Heather Knight and at drinks, the Strikers had the Thunder a very tidy 3-48.
The captain Tahlia McGrath stood up to get the dangerous Chamari Athapaththu’s wicket just short of her half century.
Marizanne Kapp and Anika Learoyd got a good partnership going from there and it wasn’t until the final over that the Strikers got more wickets, with Megan Schutt picking up Kapp and Sammy-Jo Johnson in the last.
The Thunder finished 6-118 from their 20 overs, leaving the Strikers a very chasable target.
It was a steady start by the Strikers openers, getting to 1-44 before Katie Mack was caught at point.
Unfortunately, McGrath followed Mack back the very next ball, but then Laura Wolvaardt and Bridget Patterson combined to take the match away from the Thunder with a 53-run partnership.
As she has so often done this season, Patterson convincingly finished off the innings, hitting four boundaries in the 17th to put it beyond doubt, with the chase completed with two overs remaining.
Wolvaardt’s innings of 47 earned her Player of the Match honours.
For more entertaining coverage of the match, head to our @StrikersBBL Twitter or Threads accounts, where injured fast bowler Darcie Brown took over for the first innings.
We’ve got a guest tweeter in the house! The self-confessed ‘keyboard warrior’ will be bringing you the updates from our bowling innings! #OurCityOurTeam pic.twitter.com/q0pWbGAAAl
— Adelaide Strikers (@StrikersBBL) November 15, 2023
The Strikers will now travel to Sydney for their next round of matches, before returning to Adelaide for the WBBL Stadium Series.
Get your tickets to the double header at Adelaide Oval on Friday, November 24 here.