'IPL for women is the missing piece of the puzzle' – Ellyse Perry

Ellyse Perry, the Australia all-rounder, who did her bit with bat and ball to take Supernovas across the line in the Women’s Twenty20 Challenge match, said the opportunity to play in the exhibition match ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 Qualifier 1 was the highlight of her career.

In the one-off match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday 22 May, Harmanpreet Kaur's Supernovas chased down the 129/6 set by the Smriti Mandhana-led Trailblazers on the last ball, sealing a three-wicket victory.

Perry, who took 2/20, pitched in with an unbeaten 13 off 14 under pressure as well.

"It was nice and such a competitive match that finished with a lot of excitement," she said after the match. "It was such a great opportunity to come here at the Wankhede Stadium and play on such a big occasion.

"It's good for the health of the game, in terms of the development of the players, to play with different people, under different coaches and different conditions."

The match is being pitched as a curtain-raiser for a possible women's IPL in the future, and Perry was all for it. "In some ways I guess the IPL for women has been the missing piece of the puzzle and it's certainly a good start," she said. "We've got the Big Bash League at home (in Australia) and the Kia Super League in England. This has been brilliant.

"To come here and have the experience today is certainly the highlight of my career. If we can bring something like an IPL for women up, it would be absolutely brilliant."

Suzie Bates, the Player of the Match, who top-scored for Trailblazers with her steady 37-ball 32 and returned 2/16, was also delighted with the experience.

"Our team has been brilliant and we loved the whole experience," she said. "The Supernovas team has been so welcoming and it has been just a great day for women's cricket.

"I was more a bowling all-rounder today. I really enjoyed when Smriti gave me the ball," she added.

Mandhana gave credit to Bates, the New Zealand captain, for helping her out with the decision-making. "Suzie helped me a lot in taking the decisions," she said. "We were discussing which bowler to bring on. Our girls did brilliantly to take it to the last ball."