Sydney Thunder 183 for 8 (Konstas 56, Sams 42*, Overton 2-28) beat Adelaide Strikers 182 for 8 (Overton 45*, Weatherald 40, Ferguson 3-24, Green 3-27) by two wickets
Chasing 183 in good batting conditions at Manuka Oval, Thunder appeared on track when Konstas smashed 56 off 27 balls at the top of the order. The 19-year-old became the youngest player in BBL history to hit a half-century and also made the fastest 50 in Thunder history.
But Thunder fell away after Konstas’ dismissal and needed an unlikely 33 runs off the last two overs before Sams bludgeoned legspinner Lloyd Pope in a 19th over yielding 31 runs.
Sams finished the game on the fourth ball of the last over with a boundary off allrounder Jamie Overton as Thunder ended a five-game losing streak to Strikers in stunning fashion.
It was a heartbreaking result for new Strikers coach Tim Paine, who has replaced Jason Gillespie in the role.
Konstas stars, Sams turns the match
All eyes were on Thunder’s opening pair fusing an Australian cricket great and the country’s next big batting hope.
In a sign of things to come, Konstas started with a boundary before Warner followed by reverse sweeping the spin of Matt Short. But Warner didn’t last long after a leading edge off seamer Henry Thornton was caught at extra cover.
Thunder fans in the terraces collectively groaned before their spirits were soon raised when Konstas underlined why he’s such an exciting prospect. He executed a variety of audacious shots, including several scoops and a bludgeon over cover. His biggest blow was a huge strike off Thornton over deep midwicket that sailed into the crowd.
Konstas, who received his Thunder cap from Warner, entered the record books when he reached his half-century before falling lbw to Fabian Allen.
Thunder failed to regain the momentum and appeared to be petering out to a defeat. Sams had struggled initially and survived a caught behind appeal from Thornton with the not out decision upheld on review.
Sams then rediscovered his big-hitting prowess in the nick of time with an assault on Pope, which included three sixes and three boundaries. He finished with 42 off 18 balls to snatch an improbable win for Thunder.
Allen’s injury proves costly for Strikers
West Indies’ Allen was recruited by Strikers to add to their allround depth. After he missed out with the bat, Allen’s left-arm spin proved invaluable when he dismissed Konstas.
Allen bowled accurately in his two overs, conceding just 10 runs. But his BBL debut was soured when he injured his right hamstring after diving near the ropes down the ground in an effort to stop a boundary from Sam Billings.
He limped off the field to leave Strikers’ attack shorthanded and his absence proved crucial. Allen probably would have bowled at the death with Short having to resort to Lloyd in a decision that backfired.
Successful Ferguson debut; spin twins shine
There was a lot of excitement over pace recruit Lockie Ferguson, who made his BBL debut after rejecting a central contract with New Zealand Cricket. He bowled with trademark fire to finish with 3 for 24 from four overs, with all of his wicket-taking deliveries rattling the stumps. He was clearly the pick of the Thunder quicks.
Chris Green and Tanveer Sangha also performed well and helped put Thunder in a strong position with a combined 5 for 54 from eight overs.
Having given the leadership reins to Warner, Green can better focus on his offspin and he started the season superbly with the wickets of top-order batters Jake Weatherald, Chris Lynn and Harry Nielsen.
Not a prodigious turner of the ball, Green cleverly slid the ball on and forced batters into errors, while legspinner Sangha dismissed Allen and Alex Ross as he mixed up his speeds to good effect.
Weatherald justifies the faith
Weatherald opened and he was preferred ahead of D’Arcy Short, who was at the top of Strikers’ order last season.
Weatherald initially took a back seat to his captain Short, who smashed quick Nathan McAndrew through the covers for a first ball boundary. After struggling through the white-ball series against Pakistan, Short hoped to rediscover his form in a tournament where he won last season’s best player award.
But Short’s desire to whack every delivery backfired when he was bowled in the second over by a sharp in-swinger from Ferguson in a rare BBL failure for him.
Weatherald wasn’t rattled as he unfurled a counterattack with two sixes in three deliveries off McAndrew to ignite his innings. Entering the BBL after a strong start to the Sheffield Shield season, Weatherald’s confidence was evident with clean striking marked by a sweet sound that was music to his ears.
His power and placement was impeccable as he raced to 40 but on his 19th delivery he holed out after miss-timing a slog sweep off Green as Strikers fell away.
They slumped to 101 for 6 in the 13th over and appeared to be falling well short of a competitive total. But their innings flipped with the power surge, as Oveton and James Bazley whacked 33 runs across the 15th and 16th overs.
Bazley entered with a career strike-rate in the BBL of 122 but he more than doubled that with a whirlwind 31 runs off 12 balls. Overton is relied upon to be Strikers’ finisher and he didn’t let the team down with four sixes.
Tristan Lavalette is a journalist based in Perth
