Katie Perkins' unbeaten 70 helps Hearts triumph over Spirit

Auckland Hearts edged past Northern Spirit by 13 runs at Eden Park Outer Oval in Auckland on Friday (January 10) in the Super Smash. The Hearts victory was set by Katie Perkins' valuable unbeaten 70, which helped them reach a competitive total of 138. Later their bowlers combined to restrict Spirit to just 125 runs.

Hearts won the toss and elected to bat first. The start was far from ideal though as they lost two wickets for just 19 runs, when Perkins walked in. She found an able ally in Saachi Shahri, as the duo put on a 75-run stand for the third wicket. After the fall of Shahri for 28, Perkins took center stage and ensured that Hearts finished strongly at 138 for six.

For Spirit, Lily Mulivai was the pick of the bowler picking two wickets and giving away just 20 runs. Lauren Heaps also picked up two wickets.

Chasing 139 for victory, Spirit lost Katie Gurrey (3) and Kate Anderson (23) inside the powerplay. Bernadine Bezuidenhout was moving steadily but was losing partners at the other end. She made a half century before being dismissed by Arlene Kelly for 51 off just 43 balls. No other batter could carry on and Spirit were restricted to just 125 for seven.

Four out of the seven wickets to fall were in the form of run outs and that told the story. With the win, the Hearts were placed second in the table, thereby being assured of a home Elimination Final.

Brief Scores: Auckland Hearts 138/6 in 20 overs (Katie Perkins 70*, Saachi Shahri 28; L Mulivai 2-20, Lauren Heaps 2/24) beat Northern Spirit 125/7 in 20 overs (Bernadine Bezuidenhout 51, Kate Anderson 23; Holly Huddleston 1/18) by 13 runs.