Ni Made Putri Suwandewi gets a surprise call-up from Perth Scorchers

In their quest to explore exotic talent, the Perth Scorchers management stumbled upon a rare cricketing commodity during their visit to Bali earlier this year. Perth Scorchers women's coach Becky Grundy and high performance boss Kade Harvey were mighty impressed by what Ni Made Putri Suwandewi had to offer. Suwandewi, aged 29 is a rookie pacer who made her international debut for Indonesia in 2019. Gifted with a menacing inswinger and deceptive slower delivery, Suwandewi maintains a jaw-dropping economy rate of 2.97 RPO which is by far the best from anyone in the history of women's T20I cricket.

With veteran quick Piepa Cleary forced to wait on the sidelines due to a knee injury, the door was left ajar for the young Indonesian quick to feature in one of Australia's biggest cricketing carnivals. She has been signed in as an Associate rookie for the Scorchers ahead of the upcoming WBBL season. As per the current WBBL guidelines, franchises are allowed to enlist players from the Associate nations and then place them outside the 15-player squad.

More about the Indonesian fast-bowling sensation

Suwandewi has been a standout player for Indonesia and has starred in numerous international fixtures for her country in recent times. Ever since making her T20I debut, Suwandewi has snapped an unbelievable 49 wickets in 40 T20I wickets at a stunning average of 8.18. Moreover, her career-best economy rate also makes her a tough contender with the ball as well. 

The rookie fast-bowling sensation straight away left a lasting impression upon her arrival in Perth on Saturday where she quickly garnered the attention of some of the key members of the coaching personnel during a routine training exercise. Suwandewi also confessed that she had been observing the WBBL closely and expressed her desire to play her part in it someday. Despite being short in stature, Suwandewi is armed with all the necessary traits a premium fast bowler should possess making her a force to reckon with. 

What does the Perth Scorchers team management think of Suwandewi? 

During a conversation with ESPNcricinfo, Harvey, the high performance coach for the Scorchers showered heaps of praises on Suwandewi. Harvey believes that the 26-year-old is truly capable of performing on the big stage and expects her to play a decisive role for their side in the forthcoming WBBL edition. Her natural ability to extract sharp inswing movement coupled with a highly deceptive slower ball were some of the major traits that stood out for Harvey. While observing her closely during the training session, Harvey also learned that Suwandewi has great control over her length and can fire in the yorkers at will. 

Both Grundy and Harvey expressed their gratitude for acquiring the services of this young Associate pacer and truly recognized her importance to the side and what she brings to the table. The duo has acknowledged that the availability of international players through the course of the tournament will certainly be an ongoing challenge which is where Suwandewi's presence could prove quite handy. Despite hailing from an underprivileged cricket background in Indonesia, the depth of Ni Made Putri Suwandewi's skill makes her a rarity in modern-day cricket. 

Scorchers will open their account against Melbourne Starson on October 27 at the WACA where she is expected to work alongside the T20 WC-winning captain Sophie Devine who will take charge of the Perth-based outfit this season.