Ashleigh Gardner produced one of the defining innings of Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) historical past at Drummoyne Oval on 1 November 2026, smashing 124 off 60 balls towards the defending champions Hobart Hurricanes. It’s now the very best individual rating by a captain in the match’s historical past, surpassing Rachel Priest’s unbeaten 107 from 2021, and it powered the Sydney Sixers to an 87-run win, their second-largest victory by runs in WBBL historical past, registering consecutive victories to kickstart their WBBL 12 campaign.
Ashleigh Gardner (Sydney Sixers): 124 off 60 vs Hobart Hurricanes (1 November 2026)
The Sydney Sixers arrived at Drummoyne Oval filled with confidence after a last-ball, four-wicket chase of 155 towards Brisbane Heat in their opener, although Gardner herself had made solely 2 in that pursuit. Towards Nicola Carey’s Hurricanes, Carey won the toss and selected to bowl, and the choice initially regarded inspired: the Sixers collapsed to 4/2 in the second over after which 6 for 3 when Amelia Kerr fell for 1.
Gardner, becoming a member of Kerr before the restoration began, reworked the innings with extraordinary authority. Her 124 got here from just 60 deliveries, featuring 10 fours and 9 sixes, whereas Alice Capsey’s unbeaten 54 from 40 balls provided the perfect foil. Their 176-run fourth-wicket partnership turned the very best fourth-wicket stand in WBBL historical past and the second-highest partnership for any wicket in the competitors.
The Sixers finished on 196 for 8, before Gardner’s off-spin delivered 3 for 23 from three overs as Hobart have been bowled out for 109 in 17.4 overs. Named Participant of the Match, Gardner moved to 126 runs at a strike price of 196.87 in the young season, and now has 2,876 WBBL runs at 122.48, including two centuries.
Rachel Priest (Hobart Hurricanes): 107* off 68 vs Melbourne Stars (19 October 2021)
Earlier than Gardner’s masterclass, the captaincy benchmark belonged to Rachel Priest. At Bellerive Oval in the seventh version, the former New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter opened for Hobart and crafted an unbeaten 107 from 68 balls towards Meg Lanning’s Melbourne Stars.
Priest’s innings contained 10 boundaries and 7 sixes, anchored by a 54-run fourth-wicket stand with Nicola Carey and an unbroken 59-run fifth-wicket alliance with Naomi Stalenberg. Her knock carried the Hurricanes to 152 for 4, and their bowlers dismissed the Stars for 89 in 19.2 overs to secure a 63-run win. Priest was deservedly Participant of the Match. Although Hobart finished sixth that season with five wins from 14 league games, Priest’s 262 runs at 103.96, including that century, remained a landmark captain’s innings until Gardner went beyond it.
Sophie Devine (Perth Scorchers): 106 off 62 vs Brisbane Heat (9 November 2023)
Sophie Devine’s 106 from 62 balls towards Brisbane Heat stays some of the full captaincy performances in WBBL historical past. At Allan Border Subject, after Jess Jonassen put Perth in, Devine and Beth Mooney launched the innings with a 131-run opening stand; Mooney made 50 from 42 balls.
Devine then added 57 with Nat Sciver-Brunt because the Scorchers reached 192 for 3. Her innings, constructed around 14 fours and 4 sixes, set up a 39-run win after Brisbane have been dismissed for 153 in 17.3 overs. Devine additionally took 2 for 33, incomes Participant of the Match honours. Perth finished second in the league stage that season with 16 points, although their campaign ended in the Challenger towards Brisbane. Devine’s 489 runs at 140.92 made her the match’s fifth-highest scorer that year, underlining the size of her affect.
Ellyse Perry (Sydney Sixers): 103* off 64 vs Brisbane Heat (22 December 2018)
Ellyse Perry’s unbeaten 103 from 64 balls towards Brisbane Heat on the SCG was a captain’s century of classical management. Having won the toss and batted, Perry opened alongside Alyssa Healy and guided the Sixers to 166 for 3. She shared a 75-run second-wicket partnership with a young Ashleigh Gardner, who made 36, before including 73 with Erin Burns. Perry struck 10 boundaries and 5 sixes, and the Sixers ultimately defended their complete by 11 runs as Brisbane closed on 155 for 7.
Ellyse Perry was Participant of the Match in a season where she was totally dominant: topping the run charts with 778 runs at a mean of 86.44, with six fifties and two a whole lot. The Sixers topped the league however lost the final to Brisbane Heat, whereas Perry’s career complete of 5,162 WBBL runs stays second solely to the Perth Scorchers wicket-keeper batter and new skipper Beth Mooney in the competitors’s historical past.
Sophie Devine (Perth Scorchers): 103 off 68 vs Sydney Sixers (8 November 2020)
Devine appears once more along with her 103 from 68 balls towards the Sydney Sixers at Hurstville Oval in 2020. Profitable the toss and batting first, she combined with Beth Mooney for a commanding 151-run opening partnership, with Mooney contributing 60 from 44 deliveries.
Sophie Devine’s century included 5 fours and 7 sixes as Perth posted 183 for 4. The Scorchers then restricted Sydney to 147 for 5, successful by 36 runs, with Devine named Participant of the Match for an innings that blended power and management. Perth finished fourth that season with 14 points, before exiting in the first semi-final to Melbourne Stars. Devine’s 460 runs at 51.11 made her the third-highest scorer of that version, and her overall WBBL tally of 4,253 runs places her third on the all-time list.
Ashleigh Gardner’s 124 now stands above all of them, not merely as a captain’s highest rating, however as an announcement of how damaging, match-shaping management can look in the WBBL as essentially the most unpredictable 12th version of the match takes form.
I am Yash Tailor, and I imagine work needs to be pushed by passion. Due to this fact, after completing my Engineering, I selected to work in the Cricket business, my passion. My goal is to reach a stage where I really enjoy what I do and give my finest to every process with energy and goal.
Source: femalecricket.com
