Hobart Hurricanes vs Sydney Sixers, 53rd Match: Smith half century sees Sixers to victory

The three-time BBL champions secured another convincing win, adding more points to their tally as they completed the league phase. 

Match Summary

Hobart Hurricanes 156/8 (20 ov)

Sydney Sixers 180/7 (20 ov)

Sydney Sixers won by 24 runs.

SCORECARD

Steve Smith stood out as the dominant batter in today's match again, having recently recorded consecutive hundreds in the tournament. He has clearly made significant changes to his T20 game and continues to excel.

Smith, reached his fastest half-century in a mere 22 deliveries, hitting the ball all around the park. He had a chance to make history with a third consecutive century, but ultimately fell short due to an uncharacteristic error. Despite this, his performance was noteworthy and left even the opposing team's supporters in admiration.

The Sixer's tailend finished strongly, led by Ben Dwarshuis and Moises Henriques. Josh Philippe and Kurtis Patterson both struggled earlier, and promotions for Hayden Kerr and Daniel Christian were not successful either. Wickets fell frequently as the Hurricanes bowled well in the middle-overs, causing the Sixers to delay their Power Surge.

Dwarshuis played with great force and power, specifically targeting Patrick Dooley in the first over of the Surge. His performance was crucial in providing the necessary momentum for the Sixers' innings, allowing Henriques and Sean Abbott to capitalize on it, resulting in a solid total of 180 for the team.

The Sixers, barely put a foot wrong - Jackson Bird used the new ball effectively to stop Ben McDermott's attempt to take control of the game, and even though the TV umpire had to intervene several times, it did not impede the Sixers' progress. Caleb Jewell was unable to get going either and, after Matthew Wade's promising start was ended, it seemed clear that the Hurricanes would lose.

Although Zak Crawley played well, timing his stokes and hitting some excellent shots. However, his dot ball percentage was higher than desired. Tim David moved things along and the pair put the team in a good position to make the chase competitive; however, once David was out, the task became much more difficult.

Crawley kept things ticking along with D'Arcy Short, but after Short was dismissed by a yorker from Hayden Kerr and Crawley was caught out by deep mid-wicket, any chance of a comeback was eliminated. There was a controversial decision when Jackson Bird claimed a catch near the inner circle, but the TV umpire found the replays inconclusive. However, it did not affect the outcome as the Sixers won the match by 24 runs.

Match Stats

Sydney Sixers Fall of wickets: 1-55 (Josh Philippe - 5.4 ov), 2-87 (Steven Smith - 8.6 ov), 3-91 (Hayden Kerr - 10.1 ov), 4-106 (Daniel Christian - 12.6 ov), 5-112 (Kurtis Patterson - 13.4 ov), 6-121 (Jordan Silk - 14.5 ov), 7-155 (Ben Dwarshuis - 17.5 ov)

Hobart Hurricanes Fall of wickets: 1-18 (Ben McDermott - 2.2 ov), 2-26 (Caleb Jewell - 3.3 ov), 3-52 (Matthew Wade - 7.1 ov), 4-87 (Tim David - 11.1 ov), 5-123 (D'Arcy Short - 15.2 ov), 6-131 (Zak Crawley - 16.6 ov), 7-133 (Faheem Ashraf - 17.6 ov), 8-141 (Joel Paris - 18.5 ov)

Playing XIs

Hobart Hurricanes: Ben McDermott, Caleb Jewell, Zak Crawley, Tim David, Matthew Wade(WK/C), D'Arcy Short, Faheem Ashraf, Joel Paris, Nathan Ellis, Paddy Dooley, Riley Meredith

Sydney Sixers: Josh Philippe(WK), Moises Henriques(C), Kurtis Patterson, Steven Smith, Jordan Silk, Sean Abbott, Daniel Christian, Hayden Kerr, Izharulhaq Naveed, Ben Dwarshuis, Jackson Bird

Match Details:

Date: Monday, January 23, 2023 08:15

Venue: Bellerive Oval, Hobart, Hobart

Toss: Hobart Hurricanes won the toss and elected to field