OPINION
Follow UsMarch 21, 2021. Ekana Stadium, Lucknow. Laura Wolvaardt walked in at No.4 when South Africa needed 93 from 64 balls while chasing 159. Opener Lizelle Lee was going good at the other end, seven short of her fifty. Lee perished in the 15th over after making 70 off 45 balls but not before India had dropped two catches, leaving it to Wolvaardt to finish the match. And she got the job done, remaining unbeaten on 53 from 39 balls. It wrapped the three-match T20I series for South Africa.
The middle-order ace walked in at No.4 at a similar situation on Tuesday for Velocity with Shafali Verma just one short of her fifty. The teenager was gifted a life by Deandra Dottin early in the innings, survived a run-out chance and got a leg before decision successfully reviewed. When she was dismissed by a stunning one-hand catch by Supernovas skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, Wolvaardt took over. With 59 runs required from 54 balls and Velocity captain Deepti Sharma not timing the ball well, Wolvaardt stuck to her strengths and took them home with 10 balls to spare.
Wolvaardt had toured India twice before the 2022 Women’s T20 Challenge. She had three ODI fifties and one in T20Is in the South Africa jersey. Only once did her team lose when she scored in excess of fifty runs, but that was three years ago when she was new to the subcontinent. In last year’s tour, she scored 216 runs across eight innings which had three fifties that helped South Africa seal both the ODI and T20I series.
Her series-defining knock in Lucknow had all her greatest strengths. An inimitable cover drive, cutting square off the wicket and ability to pick gaps at will. Among Wolvaardt’s right-handed peers, probably only Meg Lanning can rival her in playing through the off-side.
What was impressive about her knock of 51 not out off 35 balls was her play on the leg-side.
Her ability to pick gaps was still there, but she resisted going for her favorite cover drive as Harmanpreet had a fielder waiting all the time. Whenever the ball was tossed up outside off, Wolvaardt pulled and swept the other way which kept Velocity waiting in hope of a mistake that never came.
The 23-year old was in no rush to take on dangerous bowlers like Deandra Dottin, Sophie Ecclestone or Alana King. She waited for a full toss or the odd short ball and put them away to the fence. When the length was pulled back, Wolvaardt stepped out of the crease to thread the ball through gaps. She took the aerial route only near the end and timed her shot well enough to clear long on.
After Monday’s opener where Supernovas beat Trailblazers by 49 runs, team captains Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana mentioned two key aspects at the MCA Stadium in Pune.
“We need to take more singles and doubles, that is something that is underrated,” Mandhana mentioned.
“I think we were 20 runs short. Whenever I was thinking to execute myself, we were losing wickets. That's why I had to stay there, look for ones and twos. We need to look for partnerships,” Harmanpreet said after her team were restricted to 163 all out in 20 overs.
Wolvaardt seemed to have taken cues from the other two teams and executed them on Tuesday. She ran 10 singles and two doubles of her own and 14 singles and a double for Deepti Sharma in their partnership of 82 off 64 balls.
With her match-winning knock, Wolvaardt became the first overseas player to score fifties in WBBL, The Hundred and Women’s T20 Challenge. It also ensured that Velocity completed the highest chase in Women’s T20 Challenge’s nascent history.
After announcing her arrival in the competition, the South African hopes she can learn something from her teammate Shafali.
“She (Shafali) is probably the most chilled batter I've ever met. She is really relaxed and backs her skill and knows what her shots are. I need to do that more. Sometimes, I overthink my game a little too much. Hopefully, I can take some learnings by talking to her," she said at the post-match press conference.
However, Wolvaardt’s methodical approach is something Velocity need if they are to make to the final with a win over Trailblazers on Wednesday.
