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It would be poetic justice if the T20 clash between Australia and New Zealand at the SCG tomorrow was washed out.
The forecast is 90 per cent chance of rain with falls between 4 and 10mm in the morning, and afternoon.
A miserable attitude?
No, not at all.
Cricket Australia made two serious blunders scheduling the game in the same period as the two semis, and the final of the Big Bash League.
For starters that meant eight key players among the four semi-finalists were denied the right to compete, and in the next couple of weeks Cricket Australia will be signing a new five-year television contract seeking a massive lift from $20 million a year to $60 million.
Yet Cricket Australia was stupid enough to dig deep into the business end of their gold mine BBL.
There were over 50,000 at Perth last night for the first BBL semi – but three key players were missing, thanks to Cricket Australia.
The only way to kick Cricket Australia in the pants would be a washed out opening round of its international T20 series between Australia, New Zealand, and England – and not achieve their $60 million a year target because of their own tunnel vision.
There’s no doubt the rightful flack they’ve copped forced them to release Travis Head from the Australian squad to play for the Adelaide Strikers tonight against the Melbourne Renegades in Adelaide.
But they didn’t offer the Renegades the services of Kane Richardson.
Nor did they release D’Arcy Short for the Hurricanes last night, or Ashton Agar, and Andrew Tye for the Scorchers who were flogged by 71 runs at their new home at Optus Stadium in Perth.
In a stunning result, the Hurricanes played out of their skins despite missing the barnstorming Short, the tournament’s leading run-getter.
Surely Cricket Australia, with the second T20 game for Australia next Wednesday, will release Short for Sunday’s final at either Adelaide Oval, or Etihad Stadium, depending on who wins tonight.
Tonight’s two teams would have watched the Hurricanes carnage last night with Matthew Wade, Ben McDermott, and Daniel Christian the destroyers for the underdog Hurricanes.
Wade opened and slashed his way to 71 off only 45 with 10 fours, and a maximum on his way to man-of-the-match.
No doubt the judges gave the leftie the award because he kick-started the carnage.
But McDermott with an unbeaten 67 off just 30 with four fours and six sixes raised the bar until Christian raised it further with 37 off 22 including four fours and two sixes, plus 4-17 off 3.5 overs, conceding just one boundary in 23 deliveries that included 14 dot balls.
Overall, the white-hot favourite Scorchers managed just 10 fours and four sixes in their 139.
The Hurricanes lived up to their name with 19 fours, and 10 sixes, in their 4/210.
It was one-way traffic.