Sparks keep their playoff prospects alive

Kate Heffernan, of Otago, takes a catch to dismiss Amelia Kerr, of Wellington, during the T20...
Kate Heffernan, of Otago, takes a catch to dismiss Amelia Kerr, of Wellington, during the T20 match between the Wellington Blaze and the Otago Sparks at the Basin Reserve in Wellington yesterday. PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES
Some clutch bowling at the death and a classy knock by Katey Martin helped the Otago Sparks keep their playoffs prospects alive yesterday.

The Sparks needed to beat Wellington at the Basin Reserve to stay in touch with the top three.

Martin dragged her side through to a competitive total of 150 for eight.

White Ferns teammate Leigh Kasperek then helped seal the 19-run win with three late wickets to restrict Wellington to 131 for eight.

The victory has lifted the Sparks (14 points) to three wins from six completed games. They are in fourth place with three round-robin games to play.

Wellington (20 points) continues to lead the tournament despite the loss, while Canterbury (18 points) and Auckland (16 points) occupy the other playoff spots.

The Sparks' next assignment is a winnable match against Northern Districts in Alexandra tomorrow. But the season-defining game shapes as its last round-robin a game against Auckland in Dunedin in January 13.

Martin will be a key figure again.

The veteran wicketkeeper-batman blasted 50 from 34 balls and was eventually undone in the final over when she tried to baseball-bat a delivery to the long on boundary.

By then she had swatted eight fours and two sixes in her innings of 64.

Polly Inglis (22) and Millie Cowan (28) made valuable contributions as well.

Martin's marvellous 46-ball innings had Otago on track for a bigger score. But the middle and lower order crumbled and the last five overs yielded only 35 runs.

White Ferns leg spinner Amelia Kerr played an instrumental role in clawing back the run rate for Wellington.

Her haul of four for 21 highlighted once again just how dangerous she is with the ball.

Medium pacer Thamsyn Newton was the best of the seamers. She caught and bowled classy all-rounder Kasperek for a golden duck and snuck one passed Inglis' bat.

Keeper Jess McFadyen did the rest, whipping off the bails to effect a sharp stumping.

But the home side struggled to keep pace with the required run rate. Martin had held back Kasperek to bowl three of the final six overs and the tactic paid off.

Lucy Doolan was well set and hoping to carry her side to victory. She shimmied up the wicket looking to smack a boundary but Kasperek dipped the ball under her bat and bowled her for 27.

It was major set back and the game slipped further way when Martin stumped Newton in the next over.

Jess Kerr tried to whack her side to victory with a six and a four off Kasperek, but holed out at long on for 14 runs from six balls.

Otago off spinner Eden Carson finished with two for 26 and left-armer Kate Heffernan bowled a tidy spell without reward. But Kasperek's three for 36 proved decisive.

 

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