In a Women’s Premier League (WPL) match in Mumbai on Saturday, Royal Challengers Bangalore opener Sophie Devine scored 24 runs in a single over to help RCB get off to a strong start in their chase of 189. Against Gujarat Giants, Devine scored 99 runs in just 36 balls, hitting 9 fours and 8 sixes before getting dismissed. She went on to become the league’s all-time highest scorer and her knock helped RCB to a comfortable win over the Giants.
___ Long Six by Sophie Devine ___#WPL2023 #crickettwitter pic.twitter.com/F8nS7C5gAj– Women’s Cricket (@infemalecricket) March 18, 2023
Queen Sophie Devine, bow down! @RCBTweets pic.twitter.com/Ob6PURHgYB— Leisha _ (@katyxkohli17) March 18, 2023
What an anti-climax but Sophie Devine, you will always be famous. WPL is lucky to have you__
RCB management bows down to Divine in the end, that’s who we all are rn_ pic.twitter.com/vnXvxgFcbM— Alaska (@Aaaaaaftab) March 18, 2023
A fun chase by RCB – led by the incredible Sophie Devine who smashed an incredible 99 off just 36 balls. pic.twitter.com/rGxL79x42t– Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 18, 2023
Sophie Devine hits WPL’s longest six – 94 meters#WPL2023 #sophie devine pic.twitter.com/8sJgBXy2tx— Piyush Yadav (@impy13ro45) March 18, 2023
Sophie Devine hitting boundaries around the park#crickettwitter #WPL2023 #RCBvGG pic.twitter.com/7iRmYFe4pa
– Women’s Cricket (@infemalecricket) March 18, 2023
Sophie Devine _____
She was not worrying about her century but how quickly RCB won with good run rate.#sophie devine @RCBTweets #RCBvsGG #WPL2023 pic.twitter.com/Sg8RpcEaRr– Right..!! (@im_the_problem_) March 18, 2023
The Sophie Devine Show for all of us. No boundary is big enough for him. This is his selfless innings. He ended his innings by scoring 99 runs in just 36 balls with the help of 9 fours and 8 big sixes. What a mighty knock by him ____#RCBvsGG #WPL2023pic.twitter.com/NL3v8Z1OfS– Ashish (@ashish00007) March 18, 2023
Sophie Devine 99*(37)
Unreal 83m six followed by a 94m six! #WPL2023 @softwine77 #RCBW pic.twitter.com/k8XfvvcLcv– Cinema Network (@network_cinema) March 18, 2023
The game-changing moment came early in the second over when Devine took on Giants’ off-break bowler Ashley Gardner. Gardner had just been brought into the attack, and the first ball yielded no runs. However, Devine was in no mood to miss the opportunity and went all-out against Gardner. In the space of just five balls, she scored 6, 4, 4, 6 and 4 to score 24 runs and take the game away from the Giants. RCB skipper Smriti Mandhana could only watch as Devine dominated the attack.
Devine started the over with a slog sweep for a six, followed by two cracking cover drives for back-to-back boundaries. Gardner tried to change his line but Devine could not be stopped and hit another slog sweep over deep mid-wicket for a six. He ends the over with a well-placed down-the-ground drive to the right of mid-off for another boundary.
Despite missing out on a century, Devine’s blistering performance set the tone for a comfortable RCB win with 5 overs to spare. His innings was a masterclass in power-hitting and demonstrated his ability to take on any bowling attack. It was an extraordinary display of cricket and one that will be remembered for a long time.