Adelaide Strikers Women have had a difficult season, winning just one of five games to sit second from the bottom. With five league matches still to come they remain in the playoff race, but they need to lift their performances quickly. Laura Wolvaardt has carried the batting, scoring 142 runs in five matches at 47.33 and a strike rate of 113.60, Bridget Patterson has 70 runs in four innings, and Madeline Penna has made 75 from five outings, with Tammy Beaumont and Amanda Wellington expected to help in the middle order.
The bowling has not clicked either. Darcie Brown has been the exception, taking 10 wickets at an economy of 6.21, while Wellington and Sophie Ecclestone have four each. The rest of the attack has not applied consistent pressure.
Brisbane Heat Women are in worse shape after five straight defeats at the bottom of the table. Nadine de Klerk has been their best batter, with 108 runs in five innings at a strike rate of 127, and Grace Harris and Chinelle Henry have each passed 90, while Charli Knott has 83 at a strike rate of 114. Their bowling has been the major problem: Lucy Hamilton and captain Jess Jonassen have taken nine wickets between them, with De Klerk and Nicola Hancock adding nine more, but the attack has conceded far too many runs.