WBBL|06

[LukeParkerno1]

The only surprise for me I guess is Knight being so far up but I guess her good games she’d have got POTM. Most of the best side picks itself.

 

[The Victorian]

Would anybody else like to guess who's gonna win Player of the Tournament? Well ya too late.

Devine takes top individual gong in WBBL awards | cricket.com.au

The Perth Scorchers allrounder named the best player of WBBL|06 while judging panel also reveals…

www.cricket.com.au

Not as bad as the year Satterthwaite won it, but rather unconvincing nonetheless. Funny thing is I don't think anybody would have a problem with Devine getting around the 30 votes that she did, but theoretically when you get five POTMs it generally also means you'll have had five other good games that went unrewarded. Definitely not the case this season.

And, also, the Darcinator (we'll workshop it) takes out the top Youth Bazooka award:

The backyard beginnings of Young Gun's express pace | cricket.com.au

Named WBBL06's Rebel Young Gun, Darcie Brown reveals how her speed was born of necessity

www.cricket.com.au

Looks like Litchfield got the (sole) final-week nomination.

And, finally, a reminder that I've created matchday threads for the semi-finals:

Stars v Scorchers here

Heat v Thunder here

so taking six wickets in two days isn't enough

 

[LukeParkerno1]

so taking six wickets in two days isn't enough

To be fair Lichfield is a big reason the Thunder made it in the end.

 

[Teen Wolf]

Some closing thoughts.

What I'd like to see next year

• Another increase to the number of games on TV
• No more simultaneous matches
• No more matches played in neutral cities

Things I've given up on

• Less matches
• Co-operation of every other nation's cricket board
• The Hobart Hurricanes

Most Improved
Several players like Peschel, Redmayne and Webb were much more consistent this year. But they all played a fantastic game or two last season. I'm looking for somebody who, in addition to being more reliable, showed a dimension to their game that I hadn't seen from them before.

My two candidates must therefore be Madeline Penna and Rachel Trenaman. Penna revealed she can whack a big ball at times, though I can't say that puts her cricket in a better spot now than at the end of WBBL|05 when she looked like a unique and tricky prospect with the ball.

Although Trenaman also falls into the category of a legspinner who has seemingly given away the trade, it should be noted that a) she never had the same kind of bowling success in the league as Penna, and b) she hasn't exchanged it for some cheap occasional pinch-hitting role. Personally I still can't quite endorse her batting so high for the Thunder so soon because, although they won the whole thing, it was a bigger risk than necessary.

The Thunder's underlying theory that Trenaman's a quality young player with a big future and is worth putting time into was nevertheless justified beyond doubt. I had only ever seen her slog a few brief cameos in the past, hence my surprise while reading a few scorecards in 2019 from Australia A's UK tour where the numbers on paper suggested she was capable of digging in against a full-strength England team. Finally I got to see with my own eyes that, yes, there's both technique and an innate sense of batsmanship. Plus, it looks like she's getting fitter every year.

Best Matches

• 1st: Sixers def. Thunder by 4 runs at SSS - Litchfield flips script, Burns has last laugh
• 2nd: Thunder def. Heat by 12 runs at NSO - Brisbane fully choke in semi final
• 3rd: Strikers def. Scorchers by 3 runs at NSO - Coyte and co.'s comeback classic
• 4th: Sixers def. Stars by 5 wickets (2 balls rem.) at NSO - Healy's lament, part II
• 5th: Renegades def. Stars via super over at SSS - Webb of ties

Next on the women's cricket calendar

• India possibly touring here - up to the BCCI, are they running low on excuses yet?
• WNCL - Victoria probably gonna win that unless they schedule the last few rounds to clash with international cricket again (2019/20 was the first time it ever happened)
• Aus almost certain to tour NZ - involving a tri-series with England if they want in

 

[Cleavy]

CA should demand that Ch7 air the final on their main channel

 

[Teen Wolf]

Seven would have gladly shown a Sunday arvo final on the main channel, going by their scheduling throughout the season.

CA can make all kinds of demands but they have no leverage. Networks aren't willing to step up to the plate yet, as we also saw with the T20 World Cup final being aired on Gem and Ten's minimal pre-2019 WBBL coverage.

 

[DEVO]

Until Canberra get their own team, I'd like to see more games played at a neutral city, as long as that city is Canberra.

 

[Teen Wolf]

Until Canberra get their own team, I'd like to see more games played at a neutral city, as long as that city is Canberra.

Personally have no problems with the Thunder playing some of its home games there. In the same basket as Brisbane playing in Mackay, or Hobart playing in Launceston/Burnie etc.

But the "carnival weekends" have run their course. Every state's capital city has categorically proven there's zero interest in non-local WBBL teams. Time for CA to get serious about attracting decent crowds to women's cricket beyond one or two games per season.

The WACA infrastructure strategy made a point of stating: "The WACA has a target of increasing attendance at WBBL matches hosted at the WACA Ground to 10,000 by 2022." A comically lofty goal for them as long as they get stuck with games like Stars v Sixers.