Melbourne Stars Women vs Perth Scorchers Women, WOMENS BIG BASH LEAGUE 2019-20, Today Match Prediction 20 Nov 2019

mlsw vs perw Match Prediction & Analysis

If anyone even says it has been a forgettable season for Melbourne Stars, it would end up as an understatement. Even though Lizelle Lee and Mignon Du Preez have been at their usual best, Melbourne Stars have managed to win only one out of the nine matches they have played so far. After beginning with a four-match losing streak, Stars have once again lost four matches in succession.

This will bode well for Perth Scorchers as they are fighting for a different cause on their own. With ten points in nine games, Scorchers have the same points as Melbourne Renegades but are behind them on Net Run Rate. This is where a big win against the struggling Melbourne Stars could be of much help. Scorchers have been in decent form too as they have won three of their last four matches. The solitary loss in those four games came against table-toppers Brisbane Heat as the team's batting line-up crumbled and failed to put up a competitive score on the board. With just 113 to defend, the Scorchers’ bowling line-up led by Kim Garth couldn’t have a massive impact on the game as the team lost by 8 wickets and 23 balls to spare.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Melbourne Stars Women Preview

With home ground comfort on their side, Stars would be seeking some inspiration as their fortunes have been pretty bad this year. It might be cliched but Melbourne Stars can only play for their pride now and that is also important for a franchisee as they could start to build for the next season.

An area they wouldn’t need to worry about is their two South African recruits at the top of the order. Both Lizelle Lee and Mignon du Preez have been brilliant and notched up 303 and 266 runs respectively in nine matches. Unfortunately, the supporting cast hasn’t been great with the skipper Elyse Villani being highly inconsistent with her returns.

While batting depth has certainly troubled Stars, it is the lack of experienced wicket-takers and depth in the bowling reserves that has actually resulted in Melbourne Stars holding the wooden spoon at this moment. With the likes of Holly Ferling and Kristen Beams going through a rough patch, the bulk of the responsibility to pick wickets has fallen on Erin Osborne and Madeline Penna's shoulders. While they have taken a combined 18 wickets so far, it has still not been enough for their team.

Melbourne Stars Women Predicted Playing XI:

Elyse Villani (C), Lizelle Lee, Mignon du Preez, Anna Sutherland, Erin Osborne, Katey Martin (WK), Alana King, Nicola Hancock, Madeline Penna, Holly Ferling, Kristen Beams

Melbourne Stars Women Actual Playing XI:

Nicole Faltum, Erin Osborne, Holly Ferling, Lizelle Lee, Nicola Hancock, Alana King, Maddie Penna, Annabel Sutherland, Elyse Villani, Tess Flintoff, Mignon du Preez

Perth Scorchers Women Preview

While Lee and du Preez have starred for the Stars, it has been the trio of Amy Jones, Meg Lanning and Nat Sciver who have given a strong look to Perth Scorchers’ top-order. However, apart from them, the numbers for the Perth Scorchers’ batswomen doesn’t look good at all. While their low returns have been partly due to the fact that the above-mentioned trio have occupied the crease for the majority of the time, the likes of Nicole Bolton, Georgia Redmayne, and Jemma Barsby would have preferred to have better knocks under their belt.

With the ball, Scorchers once again resemble Melbourne Stars to an extent as only Kim Garth and Heather Graham have taken most of the wickets. Kim Garth has 10 scalps to her name while Graham has picked up 9 wickets. However, the difference has been in the form of the economy rate of the main bowlers. Nat Sciver, Taneale Peschel, and Nicole Bolton have all picked up only 4 wickets each but their economy rate is under 7.50 at the same time. All in all, it is clear that Perth Scorchers depend upon one big knock from their top three and then Kim Garth and Heather Graham would be good enough to do the finishing work for their team. Amy Jones, Meg Lanning, and Nat Sciver on their own haven’t been great in the last three games. At any cost, they would have to fire against Melbourne Stars in order to rise up the points table.

Perth Scorchers Women Predicted Playing XI:

Amy Jones (WK), Meg Lanning (C), Georgia Redmayne, Nat Sciver, Nicole Bolton, Chloe Piparo, Jemma Barsby, Heather Graham, Kim Garth, Taneale Peschel, Samantha Betts

Perth Scorchers Women Actual Playing XI:

Meg Lanning, Emma King, Taneale Peschel, Chloe Piparo, Amy Ellen Jones, Georgia Redmayne, Heather Graham, Natalie Sciver, Kim Garth, Jemma Barsby, Samantha Betts

Weather Conditions

The pitches at the Junction Oval are always great for batting. With this match set to be played in the afternoon hours, there wouldn’t be much help for the bowlers too. Average score batting first at this venue is 142.5 but at least 150-155 would be required to feel safe. Further, spinners could be pretty effective as the boundary sizes are big. When it comes to overhead conditions, it is expected to be sunny and that automatically means some beautiful weather for cricket.

Venue Details

When one doesn’t take MCG into account, the Junction Oval is one of the main grounds in Melbourne. This venue regularly hosts domestic cricket and also witnesses a lot of big scores. Out of 6 games, only once has a chasing team failed to reach their target this season. That gives a perfect indication of how good a T20 venue the Junction Oval is.

Toss: To Bowl

Straight-forward decision to field first at this venue. When conditions won’t get worse over the course of two innings, the wise option will always be to field first. The tracks at the Junction Oval also wouldn’t be a lot different in the second inning.