Fresh off a century against the same opposition, Sophie Devine had another day to remember against the Northern Spirit to lead the Wellington Blaze to a 57-run win at the Basin Reserve.

Winning the toss and deciding to bat, the star all-rounder hit seven sixes on the way to 87 not out off just 47 balls. Devine took 24 runs off the 20th over to power the unbeaten Blaze to 184-3

Devine, who scored 112 off 54 against the Spirit on Thursday, had excellent support from fellow WHITE FERN Rachel Priest. It was Priest who gave the innings early momentum, finding the boundary at will on her way to 49 from 38 balls.

Katie Gurrey (63 from 46) put together an excellent innings for the Spirit in response, but it was a lone hand. Fellow opener Bernadine Bezuidenhout (13) was the only other batter to make double figures as the Spirit limped to 126-7. 

Devine completed her match-winning performance with the ball, taking 3-15.

The win was the eight in succession for the Blaze, who are now all but guaranteed to host the women’s Dream11 Super Smash Grand Final in Wellington.

The Northen Spirit sit in fifth with two wins and will likely need to win their final three round-robin matches to have a chance at a playoff berth.

Both teams face the winless Canterbury Magicians in their next outing.
Article added: Saturday 04 January 2020