NEW DELHI: After Ellyse Perry’s spell of 6-15 in four overs and an unbeaten 40 with the bat helped Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) qualify for 2024 WPL playoffs, Charlotte Edwards, the head coach of Mumbai Indians, said the fast-bowling all-rounder is the greatest female cricketer we're ever going to see.
"I still stand by what I said five years ago: she is the greatest player I have seen with bat and ball and on the field. She is an unbelievable person as well. We are lucky to have Ellyse in our game as a role model. I have had the opportunity of working with her in the Sydney Sixers.
“What I admire the most about her is whether she is playing Club cricket, WPL or international cricket, she plays it the same way, which is highly commendable. She had a great day today, hopefully, she won’t have such a good day on Friday. We are watching greatness, and she will be around for longer," said Charlotte after the match.
Before Tuesday's game at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Perry hadn’t picked a wicket in WPL 2024. But the fast-bowling all-rounder scythed through Mumbai’s batting order to pick the best-ever figures in the WPL to bowl out the defending champions for just 113.
Former India captain Anjum Chopra had a similar view on Ellyse. “Everyone was struggling to counter the swing, pace, and accuracy that Ellyse Perry is known for. Tonight, it came in the best way as RCB wanted their top all-rounder to deliver.
“I was surprised that Perry wasn’t used consistently in earlier games, not because she got a six-wicket haul tonight, it’s just the kind of bowler she is, you expect her to be used more. I think she was the fifth bowler to be introduced to the bowling line-up. Anyhow, it’s about getting those wickets. It was an Ellyse Perry night," she said on JioCinema and Sports18.
Smriti Mandhana, the RCB skipper, revealed she had the feeling in her to give Ellyse a go with the ball once the power-play was done. "Someone with her experience, you never feel like oh she doesn't have it in her. I don't know why I just had this (feeling). Especially around the fifth or the sixth over finished, with Sajana opening (we knew that) pace is not maybe her strength, because we've seen in the tournament hitting a lot of sixes off the spinners.
"So just at that point, I thought maybe Pez would be a good option and I just got her in. I thought maybe one or two overs out of her would be great, but the way she started bowling was amazing to watch. Aside from the six-wicket haul I just feel like she's been a really good character to have in the team.
"Watching her a lot of the young Indians - including me actually, not just the youngsters - have really got motivated by her work ethic and the way she is just as a person... A real team player; I don't think a lot of people discuss that about her but just the way she's around the group, I think it's just brilliant and it just makes my job easier."
RCB needed a great performance from their star-studded line-up to enter the knockouts and Ellyse did just that. "The great thing for RCB is that they’re learning from their mistakes. When they needed a clinical performance in all three departments, the team delivered.
"Perry is an experienced player and you hope that players like her step up in match-winning situations. I thought she alone was enough for RCB. She came and took six wickets, finished the game with the bat, and will now celebrate going to the play-offs," added former India cricketer Reema Malhotra.
The same views were expressed by India wicketkeeper-batter Sushma Verma. "The way she was bowling, it was the ideal length for a fast bowler. She played on the batter’s mind by preparing the field for a possible bouncer, and then bowled on the ideal length.
"The slight movement of the ball to the inside was enough to cause wickets to fall. She took key wickets and deserves credit. As Reema said, she should remember this date and celebrate 'Perry Day!"