NSW Premier Cricket: Big names ignite T20 finals ahead of next week’s decider
The cream of Sydney’s T20 talent rose to the top in Sunday’s finals. From international batting stars to current state reps, there was plenty on show ahead of next week’s grand final. Full wrap.
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It was showtime on Sunday as Sydney’s top T20 talents put it all on the line in the finals of the Kingsgrove T20 Cup.
Twelve sides started the day but only four survived the cut ahead of next Sunday’s semi finals and decider at North Sydney Oval.
Full wrap from all venues, and next week’s schedule.
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DEPTH A WINNER
St George headed west on Sunday needing consecutive victories at Raby to keep their campaign alive.
Stacked with international and state stars, the reigning Belvidere Cup champions immediately flexed their muscles as they downed Penrith by 10 wickets with six overs to spare.
Opting bat, former state rep Tyran Liddiard batted through the innings as the Panthers posted 4/146. In a lone hand, the dashing wicketkeeper slammed an unbeaten 75 off 52 balls in a knock that saw Saints skipper Nicholas Stapleton finish with 1/49 from four overs.
NSW opener Blake Nikitaras teamed with Kurtis Patterson, and the left-handers wasted little time, mowing down the target in 14 overs. Nikitaras dominated with 86 off 46, while Patterson (63* off 38) posted his fourth score above fifty for Saints this season.
Needing to down hosts Campbelltown Camden in the afternoon game to book a ticket to Sunday’s semi-final, St George won the toss and once again teed off.
Blake Smith struck gold for the Ghosts, removing Patterson first ball. But the joy was short lived as Blake Macdonald (26 off 13) cleared the fence three times in a cameo knock as Nikitaras (64 off 47) raced to his second half century of the day.
Matt Rodgers (37 off 23) and Luke Bartier (35* off 22) continued the onslaught, leaving the Ghosts needing 188 for victory.
Justin and Anthony Mosca put on 53 for the second wicket, but when Anthony departed for a brisk 33 off 19 the wickets continued to tumble until the last fell in the final over with the score on 155.
Jake Scott was the best for the locals, his 52 off 38 was the Wagga junior’s third fifty of the T20 series. After going the journey against Penrith, Stapleton rebounded with 4/15 to squeeze the life out of the Ghosts’ chase.
WEST AUSSIE DELIVERS
T20 gun for hire Will Bosisto propelled Bankstown to the semi-finals with a match winning pair of 80s.
Put into bat by Sutherland, in his first innings of the day, the West Aussie climbed into the attack hitting five sixes in a 50-ball knock that yielded 86 runs.
Chasing 8/203, Sutho slumped to 3/40 as Ryan Felsch (3/48) struck two early blows on a placid North Sydney No.2 pitch.
Former NSW pathways rep Kobey Freer (66 off 39) and Tharindu Kaushal (50 off 22) rescued the chase combining for eight sixes, but it wasn’t enough as the Shire boys fell 13 short of the required target.
True to script, Bosisto cracked 88 off 48 in the afternoon match. With another fives maximums, the knock was eerily similar to his morning shift as Bankstown posted another formidable score of 8/202.
Zeeshaan Ahmed (65* off 45) returned to his aggressive best, and alongside Bosisto the pair put on 118 for the second wicket off just 12 overs.
North Sydney’s top four all made starts but none went on with the job as the Bears’ charge eventually fell 29 runs short.
Bankstown now face St George to secure a grand final berth.
SHAW THING FOR RANGERS
Northern District advanced to the semis after easily accounting for Easts by 73 runs at Joe McAleer Oval.
On a challenging wicket, Lachy Shaw’s 107 off 57 balls stood out like a sore thumb for the Rangers, with the Dolphins’ Trystan Kennedy hitting the next best score with 31.
The 21-year-old keeper showed why he’s on track for higher honours, blasting eight sixes in a monstrous total of 6/190.
Easts struggled to reach 8/117 in reply, with Jonty Webb taking 3/18 from four overs.
It was the fifth straight win for ND’s, who now face Fairfield-Liverpool for a spot in the grand final.
LIONS EDGE PARRA
In the closest contest of the day, Fairfield-Liverpool upset Parramatta when the Lions reached a victory target of 154 with one ball to spare.
Played at Old Kings, Fairfield-Liverpool captain Luke Ohrynowsky opted to field and his bowlers didn’t let him down.
Jaiveer Singh Dhanoa (2-34) removed the dangerous Ben Abbott (16 off 7) early, before veteran Penrith recruit Brent Williams (2-26) struck twice with his spin to leave the hosts treading water at 4/55.
Andrew Calvert resurrected the innings, his slashing 62 off 39 saw Parra post a competitive 6/153.
The visitors’ innings headed down a similar path, and when Williams was knocked over by Ryan Gupta without scoring, at 4/70, Fairfield-Liverpool were in big trouble.
Ohrynowsky (41* off 36) saw his side across the line, but the aggressive Coby Holland came to the rescue at the perfect time. The No.7’s unbeaten 27 came off 14 balls, and with his skipper, the pair added the final 51 runs from just 27 balls.
FINALS: NORTH SYDNEY OVAL, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20
Semi final No.1: Bankstown v St George, 9:30AM
Semi final No.2: Northern District v Fairfield-Liverpool, 1:30PM
Grand Final: Winner No.1 v Winner No.2, 6:30PM
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