SYDNEY, Australia, CMC – Teenaged Barbados and West Indies stroke-maker, Hayley Matthews, raised the curtain on her 2016 Women’s Big Bash League campaign in style, by producing a Player-of-the-Match innings to carry Hobart Hurricanes to a five-wicket win over Perth Scorchers in the opening game of the tournament.
The 19-year-old smashed a top score of 48 from 38 deliveries as Hurricanes easily chased down a target of 120, to get home with six balls to spare at the North Sydney Oval.
Sent in, Scorchers were held to 119 for six in the tournament-opener, with Katherine Brunt lashing 41 from 24 deliveries down the order and Lauren Ebsary weighing with 26 also from 24 balls.
Scorchers were tottering on 52 for four in the 13th over before Brunt and Ebsary combined in a 64-run, fifth wicket stand to restore pride to the innings.
Brunt clobbered four fours and two sixes to spearhead the revival.
Matthews, who opened the bowling, helped strangle the Scorchers batters with a tight spell of one for 21 from her four overs.
The right-hander then returned to plunder the Scorchers attack, hammering eight fours and a six to dominate a 72-run opening stand with Georgia Redmayne who made 24.
Matthews appeared set for a half-century when she was bowled by seamer Suzie Bates (2-24) in the 13th over.
In the final game of the triple-header at the same venue, West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor was among the runs but her Sydney Thunder – the reigning champions – went down by six runs to Melbourne Stars.
Set 148 for victory, Thunder ended on 141 for four with opener Taylor scoring a measured 32 from 35 deliveries, with five fours.
She put on 50 off 49 balls for the first wicket with Rachael Haynes who made 31 from 28 deliveries but Sydney lost wickets when the pair were separated.
Indian star Harmanpreet Kaur launched a late counter-attack with an unbeaten 47 off 28 balls with two fours and three sixes, but the effort proved in vain.
Earlier, Stars rallied to 147 for eight off their 20 overs with Emma Inglis top-scoring with 46 from 28 balls and captain and fellow opener Meg Lanning getting 33, in a 79-run first wicket partnership.