In the Woman’s Big Bash League, 5th match, held on October 22, 2023, Grace Harris created a new WBBL record. And especially she used a BROKEN BAT. What a crazy thing!
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A new WBBL record rewrite by Grace Harris
You don’t need to be a cricket fan to appreciate this, one batsman told everyone she needed a new bat but didn’t bother to get a new one and said she ‘hit it anyway’.
And it’s Grace Harris, who tore up the record books for the highest individual score in the competition’s history with a brutal 136 not out off 59 balls against the Perth Scorchers at North Sydney Oval just a day after a new low total was set in the WBBL.
Harris, who was recently dropped from Australia’s T20I squad against the West Indies, reached his third WBBL hundred from 48 balls. She also set a new record of 11 sets of six, surpassing Ash Gardner’s previous mark of 10, on the same court, against the Melbourne Stars in 2017.
One of those six balls appears in a special gameplay segment where she asks for a new bat, but continues to use the stick she wants to replace and then breaks the next ball for six when the handle was ripped off from the blade. After replacing the stick, for good measure, she also sent the next delivery from Piepa Cleary over the wire.
Video Grace Harris break the WBBL record with broken bat
The video of Grace Harris’s broken bat has been upload on Twitter by account 7Cricket immediately, and they said it’s EXTRAORDINARY!
EXTRAORDINARY!
Grace Harris had a broken bat, and this is how it played out:
"Hey guys, I need a new bat!"
"Stuff it, I'll still hit it!"
And then Harris hits it for SIX! #WBBL09 @SportsCenter #SCTop10 pic.twitter.com/ZI9JUnAyyl— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) October 22, 2023
To add context to Harris’ incredible performance, she made nine in eight balls at the end of the four-over powerplay before attacking fellow Australian Alana King for three sixes in her first two rounds.
For the third wicket, she and Mignon du Preez added 91 off 47 balls. Harris then dominated for 51 with Bess Heath as she took advantage of good boundaries and some poor bowling from the Scorchers. Harris contributed 32 off 10 balls of the 37 runs added with Mikayla Hinkley.
The Heat’s final points total was the second highest in WBBL history.
The scorers made a brave effort early on in their great chase, led by Beth Mooney’s 25-ball fifty, and were ahead of the Heat at stages in comparison.
The Heat also lost Nicola Hancock to their attack following back-to-back strikes against Sophie Devine, but they were able to regain their composure with Courtney Sippel leading the way.
Devine, who came in at No. 3, couldn’t get any further before picking deep square leg and Sippel took three points in the 10th over – but ended the contest when she said a catch back to removed Maddy Darke and had Mooney then cut to short third.
To set a record, the final total of 408 runs in the match was also a new tournament record.
In the interview
After the match, she had a few words in the interview:
“I don’t know if I could top that, I always find North Sydney to be a great ground for a batter, the wickets are quite nice and true surfaces. The boundary here, I back myself in to clear it if I give it a good swing. Might have got a bit of inspiration from Hayley Matthews recently…on what she did, she did tear our Aussie bowling attack apart.
Thought it [the handle] just clicked a little bit and didn’t want to be given nicked off as the ball went past and I didn’t hit the ball,” she said. “When I faced up, I thought it’s probably hanging on, when they get that looser handle they are at their best, they are pinging. Thought I’d still hit it for six, they’d been going miles today…it went for six, so paid off for me then.”
Grace Harris, who break the WBBL record.
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