Moises Henriques played a blinder as Sydney Sixers chased down a potentially difficult 156 in the final of the Big Bash League against Perth Scorchers at the WACA.
Henriques’ 41-ball 70 and his opening stand of 110 with Steve O’Keefe took the game away from the Scorchers. Despite a late hiccup from the visitors, the Sixers won by seven wickets with as many balls to spare.
Earlier, Brett Lee set up the win with two vital wickets in the very first over of the game.
Arguably, the tournament’s best batsman, Hesrschelle Gibbs was dismissed off the very first ball, when he pulled Lee straight to backward square-leg. Luke Ronchi found Lee’s pace too hot to handle and edged one to the keeper as Perth slumped to 2/2.
Captain Marcus North and Mitchell Marsh resisted for a bit but it was Marsh’s 52-run stand with Paul Collingwood that set the base for a late launch.
Marsh slammed 21 off the penultimate over from Mitchell Starc and the 37 runs from the last three overs brought the Scorchers to a reasonable 5/156 in their 20 overs.
Henriques and O’Keefe took time to settle down and despite not losing a wicket in the Powerplay overs, they scored only 38.
It was the events in the seventh over of the innings that changed the game around for the Sixers.
Michael Beer, who had bowled the first over and conceded only five was carted over his head for a couple of sixes, bringing momentum into the batting.
Brad Hogg, Perth’s form bowler in the tournament went for 18 in his first two overs without picking a wicket and once Coulter-Nile was smashed for another couple of sixes in the 11th, the required rate had been brought down to 6.5.
Hogg did get Henriques stumped in his second spell and seemed to have brought his side back into the game as they needed 34 from 31 balls. But a six from O’Keefe off the last bowl of his quota of overs finished the hosts.
Nic Maddinson and O’Keefe departed in the same over, the 17th of the innings, but captain Smith guided them coolly to a win with his 11-ball 21.
Earlier, the Perth Scorchers had no hesitation in batting first after winning the toss given the lopsided win-loss percentage for the teams going in first. 21 of the 30 matches before the BBL final had been won by the team batting first.
Henriques was the man of the match while Melbourne Stars’ David Hussey’s all-round performances won him the man of the series award.
Both, Sixers and Scorchers qualified for the Champions League T20 this year.
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