The Devine Destruction Hour

Bowling the final over of the PowerPlay, Sneh Rana attempted an audacious plan. She went round the wicket with her off-breaks to challenge Sophie Devine’s powerful swing.

It was a gamble to halt Devine’s momentum. Though she had raced to 33 off 21 balls, 11 of those runs came from Delhi Capitals misfields, including a dropped catch.

Testing Devine’s strength was against the odds, even with two fielders in the deep. After being hit for two boundaries and a six, Rana persisted. For the fourth time in the over, Devine took on the delivery, slog-sweeping it over cow corner for another six to reach her half-century.

As fielders retrieved the ball, Beth Mooney came from the non-striker’s end to congratulate her. Wicketkeeper Lizelle Lee ran up to Rana, offering advice. Rana’s record was under threat—the 28 runs she conceded to Deepti Sharma last season (the most in a WPL over) was in danger of being broken, ironically off her own bowling.

The next delivery was darted in, and Devine repeated the slog-sweep for another six. This time, Lee remained silent, allowing captain Jemimah Rodrigues to console the bowler.

Lee, though new to the WPL, is familiar with Devine’s destructive power. Having kept wicket for South Africa against her, Lee has witnessed Devine’s explosions at Taunton, Bristol, and across New Zealand in 2020. She knows that when it’s Sophie Devine’s hour, she becomes unstoppable.

Lee reset her gloves. Devine then slog-swept a flighted full toss over the same region for her fourth consecutive six of the over. Rana’s record was broken, reclaimed by Devine, who previously held it with a 25-run over against Tanuja Kanwar.

More tournament records fell in the PowerPlay. Devine’s 65 runs were the most by a batter in this phase, while the team’s 80 runs were the second-highest PowerPlay total.

Devine’s assault wasn’t limited to Rana. She straight-lofted Nandni Sharma for a six and flexed her power against Sree Charani.

Beyond the boundary-hitting, Devine’s innings showcased quick running between the wickets and sharp understanding with Beth Mooney, with whom she shares extensive batting experience.

With specialists being targeted, Rodrigues turned to Shafali Verma, but to little effect. Giants reached 122/1 at the halfway mark.

Rodrigues brought back Nandni Sharma to change the pace, ending Devine’s near-hour-long assault. Devine misread a back-of-the-hand slower ball and miscued to short fine leg, departing nine short of a century. Nandni admitted plans were in place for Devine, but few worked. Rodrigues conceded, "It’s tough to bowl when Sophie Devine is in such great form."

Despite her dismissal at 126/2 in the 11th over, the platform was set for Giants’ deep batting lineup. However, apart from Ash Gardner, no one capitalized. In pursuit of big shots, batters holed out to long-on, where three catches were taken. The lineup collapsed as miscues and chips found fielders. Nandni, playing only her second WPL game, claimed a hat-trick and a five-wicket haul to wrap up the innings.

Restricting Giants to 209 kept the game open. Then, Lizelle Lee took over with the bat, scoring an innovative, destructive 86 off 54 balls, supported by Laura Wolvaardt’s 77 off 38.

On a day when three legends and a newcomer shone, it fell to Sophie Devine to control the contest’s outcome, defending six runs in the final over after both teams posted 200-plus totals.

Five tidy deliveries, including the wickets of the rampaging Wolvaardt and Rodrigues, brought the equation to five off the last ball. Facing Devine was Sneh Rana, now with the bat, motivated to have the last laugh.

The climax, however, lacked drama. Rana swung and missed.

The game packaged all-round brilliance. Beyond the stars were key contributions: Sree Charani holding her nerve, Rajeshwari Gayakwad controlling the chase, Gardner’s brief blitz, Anushka Sharma’s boundary save. Yet, it was Devine’s entertaining performance that ultimately separated the teams in this last-ball thriller.

That one hour of Devine’s carnage kept Giants in contention. For any remaining worries, Devine intervened with the ball. The collective efforts of Lee, Wolvaardt, and Nandni weren’t enough to outdo Sophie on her day.