South African opener Lizelle Lee has rewritten WBBL batting records, blasting an amazing 150 not out off 75 balls in the Hobart Hurricanes' 72-run thrashing of the Perth Scorchers.
In the first cricket game of the season at the SCG, the opener and wicketkeeper eclipsed Grace Harris’s previous competition-record score of 136 not out, and her tally of 12 sixes was one more than the Heat batter’s record in her epic innings last year.
In an electrifying display on Sunday, Lee cleared the long-on and legside boundaries with ease, boosting the Hurricanes to 3-203 after they were sent in.
The Scorchers' chase never got going, with two wickets falling in the first three balls.
They were dismissed for 131 off 19.3 overs, suffering the biggest run-margin defeat of the season.
Chloe Ainsworth was the only Scorcher to shine, taking 2-17 off four overs and top-scoring with 41 off 27 balls.
Right-hander Lee dominated stands of 114 with captain Elyse Villani, who contributed just 14, and an unbroken partnership of 73 with Heather Graham (23 off 17), after Ainsworth’s early breakthroughs.
It was her fourth WBBL ton, all of them not out.
It was a big turnaround in form for Lee, who was averaging just 14 before the game and had tallied just 71 in her five previous WBBL innings this season, with a top score of 38.
She paid tribute to her teammates and family back home for supporting her through her lean trot.
“It was just one of those days where things just went my way,” Lee said.
“Coming through a little dip like that, having that support from the group which was incredible but also my family, it means a lot to me.”
She didn’t allow herself to get distracted as she closed in on Harris’s record.
“I definitely wasn’t thinking about it. I was just trying to make sure we get to a good winning total,” Lee said.
“That was a pretty good wicket and it suited me pretty well and they have some good hitters like Beth Mooney and Sophie Devine.”
Spinner Molly Strano (2-17 off three overs) bowled Devine with the first ball of the Scorchers' innings, and Chloe Piparo was run out two deliveries later.
Strano had Indian import Dayalan Hemalatha caught in the third over as the Scorchers slumped to 3-15, and they were 5-60 at the halfway mark.
Graham (3-24 off four) and Lauren Smith (2-11 off four) kept up the pressure, with only Ainsworth and Mooney (30 off 21) offering any resistance.
The Hurricanes improved to 3-3 and the Scorchers dropped to 2-2.
In the second game, Sydney Thunder scored an 18-run win over the Sixers.
The Thunder batted first and made 6-158 after winning the toss, with England’s Heather Knight (50 off 31), captain Phoebe Litchfield (34 off 25) and Chamari Athapaththu. (33 off 35) all contributing.
In reply, the Sixers slumped to 5-63, but Ashleigh Gardner (49 off 36) inspired a fightback, before they lost 5-23 and were dismissed for 140.
Samantha Bates (3-22 off four overs) bowled Gardner and moved back past fellow spinner Alana King at the top of the wicket-taking table.
Taneale Peschel (2-24 off three overs) claimed the vital wicket of Ellyse Perry (15 off 12), and Shabnim Ismail took four outstanding outfield catches in windy conditions in front of 5002 spectators at the SCG.
HIGHEST WBBL SCORES:
Lizelle Lee, Hurricanes, 150* off 75 balls v Scorchers, SCG, November 10, 2024
Grace Harris, Heat, 136* off 59 balls v Scorchers, North Sydney, October 22, 2023
Smrirti Mandhana, Thunder, 114* off 64 balls v Renegades, Mackay, November 17, 2021
Ash Gardener, Sixers, 114 off 52 balls v Stars, North Sydney, December 9, 2017
Alyssa Healy, Sixers, 112* off 69 balls v Strikers, December 28, 2018
