When the Hurricanes chose to field, they couldn't have dreamed of doing it so well.
Inviting the WBBL's bottom-placed Melbourne Renegades to bat after winning the flip at Junction Oval on Sunday, the Purple Army showed what might have been this season with an almost faultless display in the field setting up a cruisy eight-wicket win which keeps alive a faint hope of making finals.
Molly Strano (2-14) taking her 150th WBBL wicket against her old team by clean bowling dangerous West Indies captain Hayley Matthews was the highlight of a display which also saw wicket-keeper Lizelle Lee claim her fifth stumping in two games, Nicola Carey (2-24) bowling Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur with her first ball and Heather Graham adding figures of 3-12 to catching both openers.
A dismal Renegades scorecard was dominated by Matthews' run-a-ball 39 with Josephine Dooley's 16 not out the only other double-figure score as the home side slumped to 4-15, only reached triple figures off the penultimate delivery of the innings and had to settle for 9-101.
Not even Courtney Webb could rescue a team which had lost eight on the bounce during the campaign with the South Launceston product run out after facing just one ball.
In contrast to the Renegades having to wait until the end of the fourth over for a boundary, the Hurricanes' reply got off to a flyer with Lee (11) and captain Elyse Villani swiftly locating the rope.
English import Bryony Smith continued her struggles in purple with her second-highest score of 15 coming off nearly twice as many deliveries as the visitors crept towards the victory total.
An unbeaten run-a-ball partnership of 46 from the experienced and reliable combination of Carey and Villani saw the Hurricanes to a comfortable win with 14 balls to spare, the latter continuing her exceptional season with a knock of 46 not out off as many deliveries.
Strano was proud to reach her career milestone, sitting behind only Jess Jonassen's 152 WBBL wickets, achieved in a familiar environment.
"It's something I'll probably reflect on post my playing games," the Melburnian told Channel Seven.
"I'll always have a soft spot for the 'Gades, it's where I started my career and so it's nice to do this on my home ground of Junction Oval."
The 31-year-old said the Hurricanes are convinced they remain a chance to make finals.
"We still have a pulse and a win goes a long way - we've just got to keep winning," she said.
Player of the match Graham added: "We just want to go out and play our best cricket and see where it takes us, so are not worried about the table."
The Hurricanes host Melbourne Renegades at Bellerive Oval on Thursday from 7.10pm and end their campaign against Adelaide Strikers at the SCG on Sunday from 10.10am.
Rob Shaw
Heralding the impact of Tasmanian sport without saying "punching above its weight" is not as easy as it sounds.
Heralding the impact of Tasmanian sport without saying "punching above its weight" is not as easy as it sounds.
