Five take-aways from Adelaide's Big Bash final triumph

Alex Broun 20:36 04/02/2018
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  • The curtain has come down on a stunning Big Bash League with a comfortable and well-deserved victory for the Adelaide Strikers over the Hobart Hurricanes at a sold out Adelaide Oval.  Here are our five take aways from the BBL final:

    Jake’s the man

    Man of the match Jake Weatherald said he “wasn’t feeling great walking out” to open the batting. “Few nerves,” he continued, “but it came off well and plenty of support from Heady (Travis Head).” You can say that again. The 24-year-old smashed the Big Bash record books with the first century in a BBL Final, 115 off just 70 balls, to blast the Adelaide Strikers to their first-ever title. Weatherald lit up Adelaide Oval with an extraordinary innings, falling a mere seven runs shy of the highest-ever BBL score, to help the home side to an imposing total of 2-202 – setting up a record chase for the Hobart Hurricanes. Weatherald’s knock included nine fours and an imposing eight sixes, with six of those maximums and 48 runs coming from his favourite pull shot. Darwin-born Weatherald had been in decent form leading up to the final without really taking the BBL by storm with top scores of 65, 56 and 57 (in the semi against the Renegades) but on the biggest stage of all he delivered and how.

    Matthew Wade

    Matthew Wade was sent in at No6.

    Where’s Matthew Wade?

    After a stunning innings in the semi-final when he smoked the Perth Scorchers for 71-runs of 45 balls, you would have expected Matthew Wade to play a big part in the Hurricanes mammoth run-chase, which made his demotion down the order all the more surprising. The man who took Wade’s place behind the stumps in the national team, Tim Paine, opened up with D’arcy Short with captain George Bailey at No3 followed by Ben McDermott and then all-rounder Dan Christian. Wade finally made his appearance at No6, when the game was virtually gone, and would have rather stayed in the sheds as he was run-out without facing a ball, scampering through for a single to get himself on strike but Strikers keeper Alex Carey threw the stumps down and ended his brief stay. The cameras caught Wade smashing his bat into the bench after he’d trudged back to the sideline, clearly furious following his disappointing exit. “I thought it was a tough call on Matthew Wade,” Mark Waugh said in commentary. We have to agree.

    ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 17:  D'Arcy Short of the Hobart Hurricanes bats during the Big Bash League match between the Adelaide Strikers and the Hobart Hurricanes at Adelaide Oval on January 17, 2018 in Adelaide, Australia.  (Photo by Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images)

    D’Arcy Short

    D’arcy falls Short

    After an extraordinary BBL where he walloped over 500 runs leading up to the final at a staggering strike rate of 147.8, much was expected of the stylish left hander as Hobart began their run chase. And he looked perfectly placed enjoying an 81-run partnership with Bailey – but then he got bogged down. Peter Siddle’s nagging line and length and a tidy spell from the innocuous Liam O’Connor had him slowing down just when he should have been speeding up. With the target ballooning out to 82 runs from 30 balls it looked like the Canes chances were blowing the wind. But then on came all-rounder Colin Ingram – a four and two sixes later and it looked like the chase could be on again. But with Siddle tying up Dan Christian in the next over Short went for a swoosh off the last ball, nicking through to a delighted Alex Carey. It was a disappointing end for Short whose 68 off 44 balls would have been respectable in any other game – but not what was needed to rescue this one.

    Peter Siddle with his winners middle

    Peter Siddle with his winners medal

    Siddle sidles in

    BBL07 has become noteworthy for a number of old stagers showing they still have it. None more than former Test bowler Peter Siddle. Although on the wrong side of his 33rd birthday Siddle has been among the best bowlers in the tournament with an economy rate of 5.94 and only twice going for more than 30 of his allotted four overs. But in the final he stepped up a gear with an inspired spell taking three for 17, with one maiden (gold in a decider) and an economy rate of just 4.25. He also took some big wickets. First up he had George Bailey caught down the ground, just when the Hurricanes were starting to get on top. Then in the maiden over that turned the game, the 15th, Siddle kept Short and the dangerous Ben McDermott scoreless before having McDermott adjudged LBW with his fifth ball. In a very poor decision the ball probably wasn’t hitting a second set of stumps but it in no way lessens Siddle’s superb achievement.

    Liam O'Connor covered for the missing Rashid Khan

    Liam O’Connor covered for the missing Rashid Khan

    (Not) Missing Rashid

    Much of the talk before the match was how the Strikers would cover for the loss of bowler of the tournament, Afghan leg -spinner Rashid Khan, who is now on international duty in Sharjah. Into the line-up came little known leggie Liam O’Connor. His last bowl was in Perth premier cricket on December 9. But his right-arm wrist spin – skidding and attacking the stumps – was perfectly suited to the surface. The Hurricanes’ preference for pace on the ball is well known and with Travis Head taking the new-ball the Strikers set out their stall very quickly. Before the final, Hobart had scored at 9.51 runs per over against pace, compared to 7.01 against spin. O’Connor and Head bowled three of the first four overs post the powerplay (the seventh, eighth and tenth) turning the screws as the Hurricanes scored just 25 runs, including one boundary. In the semi-final, against the Scorchers’ all-pace attack, the Hurricanes scored 38 in the same period, hitting a boundary an over, with Matthew Wade inflicting most of the damage.

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