Chloe Piparo’s maiden half-century powers Perth Scorchers straight through to WBBL final at Optus Stadium

Chloe Piparo will play off for a Women’s Big Bash League title with the Perth Scorchers at Optus Stadium — steering her side straight through to the grand final with a masterful half-century on Sunday. The Scorchers catapulted to the top of the ladder with back-to-back wins on Saturday and Sunday and confirmed their place in the decider with a thumping eight-wicket win over Ellyse Perry’s Sydney Sixers. Returning to the No.3 position behind dominant opening duo Sophie Devine and Beth Mooney, Piparo came to the crease at 1-34 and was forced to ride out a good spell of bowling from young Sixers seamer Stella Campbell. She was interrupted again when Mooney fell for 26, but settled into her work and combined with Heather Graham for a 74-run stand to guide the Scorchers home. On Saturday, both Devine and Mooney fell for five, but what could have been an extended stay at the crease for Piparo ended with a near run-a-ball 27, with Marizanne Kapp and Mathilda Carmichael powering them to a four-wicket win. It leaves the Bunbury product with 202 runs from nine innings at an average of 33.66 for the home-and-away portion of the tournament. The finals series begins on Wednesday, with the Brisbane Heat meeting the Adelaide Strikers and the winner to face the Melbourne Renegades on Thursday. The winner of Thursday’s game will then make the trip west to play the Scorchers on Saturday evening. It will be the franchise’s third attempt at a WBBL championship, having lost finals to the Sixers in both 2016 and 2017.