Supernovas overcome late scare to bag third Women’s T20 Challenge title

A superb partnership between Laura Wolvaardt and Simran Bahadur for the ninth wicket brought Velocity within touching distance of the title despite slipping to 117/8 in the 17th over in a chase of 166. But Sophie Ecclestone bowled a fine last over, holding her nerve to help Supernovas lift the Women’s T20 Challenge trophy for the third time in four editions.

Asked to bat, the Supernovas posted 165/7 thanks to Deandra Dottin’s 44-ball 62 and Harmanpreet Kaur’s 43 off 29. Dottin also did well with the ball, as did Alana King, but it was Ecclestone who ensured that Wolvaardt’s unbeaten 65 off 40 and Simran’s 20 not out off 10 went in vain in the final at the MCA stadium in Pune on Saturday (May 28).

Regular wickets dent Velocity’s chase

Shafali Verma and Yastika Bhatia got Velocity off to a brisk start in the chase, scoring five fours between them in the first two overs. However, Shafali was cramped for room while attempting to cut Dottin in the third over and had to depart for an 8-ball 15. In the same over, Kiran Navgire was struck on the helmet and she struggled to get off the mark as she watched Bhatia score a boundary off Ecclestone and hand a catch back to the bowler soon after. Chantham got off the mark off her fifth delivery while the pressure of not having scored a run got to Navgire as she was bowled by Ecclestone for a 13-ball duck. After a couple of quiet overs, Wolvaardt eased the pressure a bit by scoring two boundaries off Vastrakar in the ninth over. But Chantham was out lbw in the same over and by the time the 11th was completed, Velocity had lost half their side with their captain Deepti also making it back to the hut in King’s first over.

Velocity went without a boundary for 22 deliveries before Rana played a sweep off King for a four in the 13th over. But Velocity were still playing catch-up, with as many as 91 required off the last seven overs. Wolvaardt and Rana tried to keep up, scoring some much-needed boundaries, including a six by the South African off King that helped Supernovas past 100 in the 16th over. But King bagged the wickets of both Rana and Radha in the same over while Dottin picked up her second by sending Cross back after being hit for two fours, to further dent Velocity’s chances.

How did it come down to 17 off 6?

Wolvaardt and Simran struck a six apiece off King in the 18th over, which brought the equation to 34 off the last two overs. Vastrakar, who bowled the penultimate over, was guilty of bowling full-length deliveries with mid-on and mid-off inside the circle. Wolvaardt started the over by powering one past mid-off for a four before taking a single. Vastrakar tried bowling the yorker but kept missing the length as Simran lofted two fours over mid-off before scooping a length ball over short fine for another four. The final ball was a dot, but was a marginal decision as the umpire could have signalled it a wide.

What happened in the final over?

Ecclestone, the No. 1 ranked T20I and ODI bowler, was slog-swept for a six by Wolvaardt, who then took a single. With 10 needed off 4, Simran could only manage a leg-bye while Wolvaardt attempted slog-sweep only gave her a couple off the fourth delivery. Ecclestone fired the next one yorker length and Wolvaardt could only manage a single, leaving Simran to handle the final ball with six needed. She stepped out and converted it into a full toss but her swing across the line was mistimed and she also lost the bat, as the Supernovas prevailed in a thrilling finish.

Dottin rides her luck in a steady stand

Kate Cross and Deepti Sharma kept it tight in the first couple of overs, not giving any room for Supernovas’ opening batters to free their arms. It was only in the third over when Cross bowled one a wide wide and on a length that Puniya struck for a six over covers. Deandra Dottin ended the over by flicking away another full delivery through midwicket for a four. Dottin had a lucky break in the fourth over as Sneh Rana put down a simple chance at midwicket and an umpire’s call further extended the Windies batter’s stay after she was rapped on the pads by Ayabonga Khaka. Dottin cashed in soon after, striking two successive sixes off Rana in the final over of the powerplay.

Dottin and Puniya brought up their second half-century stand in this edition, with the former getting another reprieve when Simran put down a catch off her own bowling. Dottin managed to just about clear Kiran Navgire when she played a pick-up shot off Khaka in the ninth over. She continued to ride her luck as Natthakan Chantham put down a tough chance diving full-length at point in the 10th over. Puniya struck a six in the same over off Simran before Wolvaardt juggled and held on to a catch to send the Indian batter back for 28, ending a 73-run stand.

The Harmanpreet-Dottin association

The sixes continued as Dotting slogged one over midwicket off Radha Yadav in her first over while Harmanpreet went over cow corner off Rana, with Velocity crossing 100 in the 12th over. The Supernovas skipper also struck two sixes and a four off successive Radha deliveries, scoring the bulk of the runs in a quick-fire 58-run stand for the second wicket. Despite Dottin getting out to Deepti, bowled by the Velocity captain, the Supernovas were well-placed to finish in the vicinity of 180, having reached 131/2 at the end of the 15th over.

Why then did Supernovas end up with 165?

Due to a collective bowling effort which dented the opposition with regular strikes. Khaka had Vastrakar bowled with a slower delivery in the 17th over after Cross had bowled a quiet over earlier. The England pacer also struck twice in the 18th, bagging the important wicket of Harmanpreet (caught at long-off) and Ecclestone (caught behind). She finished with 2 for 29 from her four overs while Deepti, who gave away only five and also picked up the wicket of Sune Luus, had 2 for 20 from her four-over spell. King scored a six off Simran in the final over, with 10 coming off it along with the wicket of Harleen Deol.

Brief scores: Supernovas 165/7 in 20 overs (Deandra Dottin 62, Harmanpreet Kaur 43; Deepti Sharma 2-20, Kate Cross 2-29) beat Velocity 161/8 in 20 overs (Laura Wolvaardt 65*, Simran Bahadur 20*; Alana King 3-32, Sophie Ecclestone 2-28, Deandra Dottin 2-28) by 4 runs.