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Annabel Sutherland has etched her name into the history books, scoring an emphatic double-century in Australia’s Test match against South Africa to give the hosts a mammoth lead at the WACA.
The 22-year-old has emerged as one of the best talents in women’s cricket in recent years, bursting onto the scene for Australia and becoming a staple of the lineup in all three formats, starring with both bat and ball.
Sutherland scored her maiden Test century overseas last year against England and has now backed it up on home soil, reaching triple-figures on day two in Perth.
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The right-hander crunched boundaries for fun against the visitors in Perth and was part of the contingent that steadied the ship for the Aussies after a tough start with the bat, giving the side a commanding first innings lead.
Her crowning moment was celebrated by her teammates in the stands and on commentary, with Mel Jones praising the Victorian young gun.
“We’ve said it once, we’ll say it many times – she is made for Test match cricket,” Jones said on the Fox Cricket coverage.
“That is her second hundred for Australia. The first on English soil and the second here on home soil. If she continues playing Test match cricket like this, we will see that celebration many times in the future.”
She wasn’t done there however, reaching the 200-run mark before tea as the Aussies mounted a mammoth first innings total and Sutherland continued to dispatch the South African bowlers to all parts of the ground.
“She holds her shape beautifully for the most magnificent double-hundred you will ever see in Test match cricket,” Jones remarked again on commentary.
“Annabel Sutherland, soak it all up – you completely deserve the applause.”
Sutherland also created a unique piece of history with her ton, becoming the first Australian to score two Test centuries by the age of 22 since the late Phil Hughes, while also becoming the first woman to achieve the feat.
She also reached a double-hundred quicker than any woman in Test history, before she was ultimately dismissed for 210 off 256 balls.
It caps off a huge summer for the Sutherland family, with her older brother Will making his international debut in the white-ball fixtures against the West Indies.
Earlier in the innings, Alyssa Healy fell agonisingly short of her first century in red-ball international cricket, with the skipper dismissed for 99 late on the opening day.
Australia declared at 9-575, which is the largest score in an innings across all of women’s Test history, before sending South Africa back in and taking three wickets before the close of play, with the visitors set to resume at 3-67 on day three and remaining a whopping 432 runs behind their opponents.
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