All-round Matthews leads Melbourne Renegades to maiden WBBL title

Posted By on December 1, 2024

Melbourne Renegades 141 for 9 (Matthews 69, Knott 3-28) beat Brisbane Heat 90 for 6 (Jonassen 44*, Matthews 2-24) by seven runs (DLS method)

An all-round masterclass from Hayley Matthews helped Melbourne Renegades break their WBBL title-drought in a nail-biting rain-affected final against Brisbane Heat at the MCG.

Matthews made 69 off 61, took 2 for 24 with the ball and claimed a critical catch to continue her extraordinary record in T20 finals and guide the struggling franchise claim their first championship just a season after finishing last. Heat’s finals heartbreak continued after losing last year’s decider by three runs at Adelaide Oval.

A sloppy fielding effort saw Heat concede 141 for 9 when they could have reduced Renegades to 76 for 5 after 12 overs. A top-order collapse either side of a rain delay then saw them needing 61 from 30 with five wickets in hand. Jess Jonassen nearly pulled off the impossible, smashing 44 not out from 28 balls but Heat still fell short. Five of Renegades’ six bowlers chipped in with wickets while Wareham was the most economical, conceding just 12 runs from two overs.

Renegades rocked by early rust

After qualifying for the final, Renegades had to wait eight days between matches and the rust showed early. Courtney Webb slapped a pull shot straight to midwicket and Sophie Molineux sliced a cut shot to backward point. Deandra Dottin was run out in dozy circumstances, without facing a ball, to sum up Renegades’ sleepy start. Dottin was jogging through for a single to deep midwicket when she got her bat stuck in the turf on the popping crease as she slid it to make her ground and her foot did not touch down before Georgia Redmayne broke the stumps. It left Renegades 23 for 3 in the fifth over and in real danger of capitulating despite Heat’s bowling not looking overly threatening on a pretty good surface.

Cool-headed Hayley holds firm

Matthews remained unflustered. She was not striking the ball cleanly, struggling to 6 off 15 at one point. But two boundaries in the sixth over off the legspin of Grace Parsons helped her find some rhythm. Wareham was an important foil in a steadying 41-run stand. Wareham struck three boundaries in her run-a-ball 21 before holing out to long-on off Parsons. The legspinner should have had another straight away when Stalenberg skied her to deep midwicket, but Charli Knott dropped the chance diving forward. It proved a key moment.

Instead of being 76 for 5 after 12 overs, Renegades took the power surge after just four-down. Matthews stepped up, thumping Shikha Pandey for three boundaries in the over. Jonassen then opted for spin in six of the last seven overs, with the exception of one from Lucy Hamilton. It worked to some degree, as Renegades scored just 50 from 42 balls, but it was odd to see Nicola Hancock bowl just one over in the final after being Heat’s star in last year’s decider with 3 for 23. Heat did take a wicket in each of the last five overs. Hamilton was the pick of the bowlers with 1 for 19 from her four including the dangerous Nicole Faltum. But Matthews was able to club three boundaries in the last three overs, all from the offspin of Knott.

Horror Heat start compounded by rain

Grace Harris held the key in the chase, and the decision to open with Charis Bekker‘s left-arm orthodox proved a masterstroke for Renegades. Harris holed out trying to loft over mid-on for a second ball duck. Jemimah Rodrigues miscued Milly Illingworth to cover in the next over as Heat fell to 11 for 2 before a critical rain shower came after 3.2 overs. Rain had been forecast for some point in the afternoon and had been a factor in Heat’s decision to bowl first. But no one was sure how long the shower would last and how it would impact the chase.

The rain lasted long enough to knock off eight overs but Heat’s poor start meant Duckworth-Lewis-Stern set them 98 to win off 12 overs with only eight wickets in hand and one power surge over to use. Renegades continued the trial by spin after the rain and Heat were doused. Molineux bagged the key wicket of Redmayne before Matthews added to her finals aura with two wickets in two balls, including Laura Harris for a first ball duck, to leave Heat 37 for 5 needing 61 from 30 balls.

Jonassen almost pulls off a miracle

Heat’s captain almost did it. Boundaries in each of the next two overs keep them within touching distance of the alarming required rate before she opted to take the surge with 43 needed from 18. Molineux opted to bowl just the second over of pace for the innings and Dottin got clobbered. Two length balls on the pads sailed to midwicket for six and four respectively. Jonassen lofted the next over cover for two more as Renegades fans started to get nervous.

But a mistake from Lauren Winfield-Hill off the next delivery proved costly. Jonassen wanted a second run to deep midwicket to retain the strike, Winfield-Hill denied her. The English import miscued the next to Matthews at mid-off to fall for 3 off 5. Hancock then faced a dot and the equation was 30 off 12. Matthews bowled two long hops that were both smashed to the fence but was able to close out the over without any more damage. Molineux returned to bowl the last with Heat needing an unlikely 19. She gave up just 11 including a consolation six off the last ball, sealing Renegades’ first WBBL title.

Alex Malcolm is an associate editor at ESPNcricinfo

Source: ESPN Crickinfo

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