(Cricket news) Melbourne Stars defeated Sydney Thunder by 12 runs in a low scoring contest. Deepti Sharma and Smriti Mandhana both played for the Thunders. Stars captain Meg Lanning elected to bat first after winning the bat flip.
Melbourne could only manage 108 runs in 20 as opener Elyse Villani scored 52 off 63 balls while wickets kept falling on the other end. Deepti Sharma bowled 4 overs for 28 runs and picked up the wicket of Irish all-rounder Kim Garth. Smriti Mandhana had a good day in the field as he took a good catch and inflicted a run out.
Chasing 108, Smriti Mandhana and Tahlia Wilson walked out to bat. Mandhana once again was dismissed early trying to chase a wide delivery. The left hander has a tendency to chase balls wide outside off which has led to her downfall in the WBBL this season. Mandhana has scored only 16 runs in the innings so far. Out of all the Indian players ,the opener has possibly been the least impressive in the tournament so far.
Kim Garth destroyed Thunder's top order and Deepti Sharma walked in to bat when her side was 12 for 3. The All-rounder steadied the ship and anchored the innings. Sharma didn't manage to fire at the end as Sydney Thunder fell 12 runs short. The left-hander ended the innings at 44* off 48 deliveries, hitting 4 boundaries in the process. Sydney Thunder are currently last on the table having lost 3 of their 4 matches with 1 being a no result. Their next match is against Melbourne Renegades where they desperately need a victory.
