Melbourne Renegades 146 for 6 (Capsey 33, Faltum 29, Stalenberg 26*, Kapp 2-22) won Melbourne Stars 141 for 9 (Deepti 23, Illingworh 1-8, Bekker 1-9) by 15 runs
Bekker was playing in just her second WBBL game after being called up to the team to replace the injured Sophie Molineux (knee). The 20-year-old didn’t let the grand stage of a Melbourne derby faze her, returning a paltry figures of 1 for 9 in her four overs to be named player of the match.
“It’s been a whirlwind,” Bekker said. “I was in the pub a couple of days ago with my friends and then I got the call. [to join the squad]. I played against the Scorchers and it was really great. And then he got on a flight. “It was very rushed.”
Bekker’s first WBBL wicket was none other than superstar batsman Meg Lanning.
“Everyone was cheering me on, I was just trying to throw my best ball and it turned out to be Meg Lanning, which was awesome,” Bekker said.
The Renegades were 54 for 2 after 10 overs when they took the power surge. Although Deandra Dottin fell for 7 soon after, Renegades managed 29 runs in the two overs. Alice Capsey and Wareham fell in quick succession before Stalenberg and Faltum steadied the ship with a 55-run stand.
The Stars’ chase started slowly with the scoreboard reading 16 for 1 after five overs. Bhatia was lucky to still be there after wicketkeeper Faltum dropped her in the first over when he was yet to score. The opener scored 22 off 26 balls, but the rest of her teammates struggled for fluency as the required running speed soared.
