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BBL12 is just three days old and already has seen no shortage of drama – and an extraordinary night in Sydney has seen the Adelaide Strikers add a whole lot more.
Seemingly vulnerable defending 140 against the Sydney Thunder, an incredible performance from the Strikers’ pace-bowling battery saw them bowl the Thunder out for just 15, leading to the sort of scorecard usually seen in one-sided junior cricket games.
Strikers’ star leg-spinner Rashid Khan wasn’t required to bowl a single over, and nor was captain Peter Siddle. Instead, quicks Henry Thornton (5/3) and Wes Agar (4/6) ran riot as the Thunder batters edged everything within reach.
Wicketkeeper Harry Nielsen plucked five catches, Matt Short at first slip two – the first a one-handed stunner in contention for the catch of the tournament – while Tom Kelly and Adam Hose each held onto a chance at point.
Daniel Sams was the only Thunder batter to not fall to a catch behind the wicket, unluckily bowled after the ball deflected off his thigh pad. It summed up the Thunder’s night.
In a perfect coincidence, the game coincided with Thornton’s 26th birthday – with a five-wicket haul and obvious player of the match honours, he wouldn’t have had too many better ones.
“I honestly cannot believe what just happened,” Thornton told Fox Cricket after the match.
“I think everyone here probably doesn’t know what is going on either. It was amazing. We thought they bowled really, really well considering what the wicket was doing. And we just thought if we hung in there long enough we’d create chances.
“That’s unbelievable. I’ve never had that happen in my life to be honest. It’s amazing.
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“We just thought if we bowled top of the stumps, and we were really clear on what we wanted to execute, we’d be in the game. We got a lot of nick-offs – Harry took five catches and Shorty, that was one of the best catches I’ve ever seen at first slip.
“We’re really happy. I’m really happy for Wes. He bowled really well tonight, super disciplined.
“I feel like I need to retire now. I don’t think I’m getting better than that!”
Wes Agar of the Strikers celebrates dismissing Alex Hales of the Thunder. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
The horror show took just 35 balls and 31 minutes, and annihilates the previous record-low score in the BBL of 57, set by the Melbourne Renegades in the 2014/15 season. This one is unlikely to be broken anytime soon.
And it gets even worse for the Thunder – the paltry effort is the equal-lowest score in Australian professional cricket history, be it T20, first-class or List A formats. A Victorian effort in the 1903/04 Sheffield Shield is its only peer.
It’s also the lowest ever completed score in a T20 match, going past the 21 scored by famous cricketing nation Turkey against the Czech Republic in 2019.
Even England Test captain Ben Stokes was watching on in awe.
So short was the innings, it could even be fully captured in a single Tweet.
It was a sign of things to come that Short, who often opens the bowling for the Strikers so as to burgle a part-time over, picked up a wicket with his unassuming off-breaks, Matthew Gilkes starting the rot by chipping an innocuous ball to a diving Hose at point.
In the next over, Rilee Rossouw – who fell to a catch of the tournament contender to the Melbourne Stars’ Brody Couch in the BBL opener on Tuesday night – fell to a second as an edge was incredible snaffled by Short at slip in his outstretched right hand.
The pace of Thornton and Agar was too much for the rest of the Thunder batting order, with a string of footwork-free wafts at the ball offering catching practice to Nielsen and the slips cordon. Captain Jason Sangha began the procession for a second-ball duck to gift Thornton his second wicket for the over.
Then, having watched three teammates fall while at the non-striker’s end, Alex Hales provided an exact imitation of Sangha’s downfall, just off Agar instead.
With the scorecard a remarkable 4/7, the match was all but decided: but the bereft Thunder would sink even further. Sams’ drag-on, an Agar ball ricocheting off the bottom of his thigh bad and onto leg stump was genuinely unlucky…
… while there wasn’t much Alex Ross could do about a genuine rip-snorter from Agar, searing up off a length and tickled behind for another Nielsen catch.
With the Thunder fans resorting to Bronx cheering dot balls – one such cry after a Chris Green forward defence bringing forth a wry smile – the rout continued as Agar picked up a fourth in familiar fashion.
The hero against the Stars with the bat, tailender Gurinder Sandhu could only last two balls before offering Short more catching practice at slip: Agar, remarkably, had figures of 4/2.
Brendan Doggett tickled one to the fine leg boundary to momentarily stop the procession – and, it would soon prove, win himself top-scorer for the innings status despite only facing a single ball.
It didn’t matter, though: unimpressed at being outshone by Agar, Thornton ensured his player of the match award by cleaning up the innings.
Last recognised batter Ollie Davies flashed at another wide one, Nielsen safely pouching his fifth catch, before Fazalhaq Farooqi – whose outstanding 3/20 off his four overs with the ball now seemed a lifetime ago – squirted the quick to Kelly at point. The rout, at last, was complete.
Speaking to Channel 7 after the match, captain Peter Siddle expressed his shock not just at the rapid finish, but that neither he nor Rashid were required to bowl a single ball.
“Rashid’s played a lot of T20 cricket and that’s the first time he’s not bowled a ball in a T20 match,” he said.
“For the two of us not to bowl a ball, it’s still quite amazing. The boys bowled superbly.
“Exactly what I said earlier about coming in, being disciplined, bashing a length; they did that and they reaped the rewards.”
The Thunder have just two days to regroup and come to terms with the ignominious result before their next assignment, a trip to Melbourne on Sunday night to battle the in-form Renegades.
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