Adelaide Strikers just fail to maintain unbeaten streak after narrowly falling to Sydney Thunder
Rashid Khan produced one of the great Big Bash League innings but it wasn’t enough for the Strikers to see in 2020 with a win.
If South Australian cricket’s worst fears are realised and Adelaide misses out on a Test match against India in 2020, then the Aussie team might be the second favourite with locals if Afghanistan come to town.
After starring with the ball in the BBL09, Rashid Khan showed off his talents with the bat as the Strikers fell narrowly short of overhauling Sydney Thunder on New Year’s Eve.
The star leg-spinner dragged the hosts back from the brink with a scintillating 18-ball 40, full of some shots that needed to be seen to be believed, to turn a match that looked like it would be a cruisy win for the visitors into a thrilling game that came down to the very last ball.
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He had a 40,000 plus Adelaide Oval crowd on its feet, and had commentators wondering if there was a stand at the ground that could be named after him after some sublime stroke-playing had the Strikers needing four runs off Daniel Sams’ final ball.
But Wes Agar could not manage any runs off it and the Strikers lost their first New Year’s Eve match ever and lost their unbeaten start to BBL09.
Callum Ferguson (73 off 46) and Usman Khawaja (63 off 50) helped the Thunder to 5-168 and the Strikers made a terrible start to the chase, slumping to 2-11.
Jake Weatherald (52 off 37) dragged the Strikers back into it but when he hauled out it looked like chase was too much for Adelaide before Rashid’s late heroics.
A SEASON FIRST
The Strikers were yet to taste BBL09 defeat coming into the game and one thing was common in their fine start to the season, they were batting first and then defending their total.
But Ferguson’s decision to have a bat after winning the bat flip meant it was new territory for the Strikers this season.
Whether more teams go down this route in the future against the Strikers remains to be seen, but how they fared after having to chase would give the rest of the BBL hope this can trip up Adelaide in 2020.
RASHID’S ROLE
BBL teams have tried to figure out how to stop the Strikers’ spin king from tearing through their line-ups, as he has consistently done for Adelaide.
But Australian cricket great Ricky Ponting might have answered this question, pointing out that Rashid Khan had only taken four BBL wickets of batsmen that are left-handed.
Khawaja certainly looked comfortable and at one point Alex Ross (19) cooly reverse swept the Strikers’ star to the boundary.
Another oddity surround Rashid was how he was used by Carey.
Normally more utilised in the middle of the bowling innings, two of Rashid’s overs were had in the final four of the Thunder’s knock and Ferguson and Ross went after him.
After his third over went for 13 runs, Ferguson exploded and smacked the first three balls of his fourth for a four and two big sixes and while he was caught hauling out the next ball it resulted in a very unlike Rashid showing of 1/44.
GRANDSTAND FINISH
While wasn’t exactly his day with the ball Rashid showed why is such a threat with the bat.
The game looked like it would be a convincing Thunder win going into the final stages, but then the Strikers fan favourite nearly pulled off a miracle.
He hit three sixes and four fours but it was the manner of the shots that thrilled the crowd.
He flicked, he fell over for some and he nearly pulled off a near-impossible victory.
Originally published as Adelaide Strikers just fail to maintain unbeaten streak after narrowly falling to Sydney Thunder