Perth Scorchers captain Sophie Devine chose to bat first, but the start was rocky with opener Beth Mooney run out in the second over, followed by Chloe Piparo’s dismissal by Chamari Athapaththu. Despite this, Dayalan Hemalatha stabilized the innings with a brisk 26-ball fifty, taking the Scorchers to 74/2 by the ninth over. However, Hemalatha fell in the 10th over, and Devine and Amy Jones then added 35 runs, pushing the score to 114/4 in 15 overs. Shabnim Ismail dismissed Jones, but Devine continued attacking, reaching 36 off 28 by the 17th over. Soon after, the Kiwi star was dismissed by Ismail, sparking a passionate celebration from the bowler.
On the final ball of the 19th over, Ismail delivered a good-length ball angled into the leg side, targeting the stumps. The Perth skipper, backing away to create space and staying low, attempted to cut it towards third man but missed entirely. The ball struck the off stump, leaving Devine visibly frustrated as she tossed her bat up and caught it in disappointment. Meanwhile, an energised Ismail pointed toward the dugout, gesturing a pointed send-off to Devine.
Classic Shabnim!
