Alex Hales and Chris Morris star as Thunder take down Scorchers
Sydney Thunder imports Alex Hales and Chris Morris both took a step closer to new contracts by guiding their side to a clutch, rain-shortened win over the Scorchers.
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No matter how far they go in this year’s Big Bash, there’s one thing the Sydney Thunder should do right away: re-sign Alex Hales.
And once they’ve got him to put pen to paper, they should make sure they get Chris Morris to sign on the dotted line as well.
Unwanted by their own international teams, Thunder’s two foreign imports have been nothing short of sensational this season, keeping their cool when everything and everyone seemed to be conspiring against the luckless men in lime green.
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Dumped from England’s World Cup squad after he tested positive to recreational drugs, the biggest dopes are the Poms who let Hales go. He’s lived up to all the hype and more this summer.
His explosive 47 in Sunday’s seven-wicket win over the Perth Scorchers was just the latest amazing knock in a season of 449 runs at a strike-rate of 144.
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He made 85 against the Scorchers a week ago and 63 in the loss to Hobart and has made four half-centuries.
But no-one should be surprised. This is a bloke who’s been ranked the No. 1 T20 batsman in the world and has been destroying bowling attacks in every competition he’s featured in.
He only signed a one-season deal with the Thunder but he’s fitted in so well with teammates and staff that he’s almost certainly to be invited back.
“It was a lot closer than we would have liked. It was important to get off to a good start and fortunately we just scraped over the line,” Hales said.
“It’s been really enjoyable. On a personal level, I really wanted to do well over here and perform well for Sydney Thunder and so far I’ve done that and I feel in good touch at the business end.”
Hales made a tricky run-chase achievable when he clubbed four fours and two sixes off the Perth bowlers.
The home side were set a revised target of 96 to win off 12 overs after the Scorchers were 4-99 off 15 when the match was delayed by rain.
The match was still in the balance with the Thunder needing 12 off the last over, when Morris ended the contest with a six then a four off Matt Kelly to reach the target with two balls to spare.
The South African all-rounder has struggled with his batting this season but delivered when it mattered.
“Games like that is what you train for,” he said.
“There was one stage where I was looking to find the middle of the bat because I didn’t think it had one but that’s what we train for.
“Anything can happen in this game. We had a goal to win this game and we did that because we put everything on the line and that’s all you can ask.”
Originally published as Alex Hales and Chris Morris star as Thunder take down Scorchers
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