‘Insane’: Riley Meredith torched over ‘dumbest thing I’ve seen on a cricket field’

Tasmania’s Riley Meredith has been trashed after he cost his state a much needed win with a diabolical act on the last ball of their latest match.

Tasmania have snatched defeat from the jaws of a draw in a remarkable finish to their Sheffield Shield clash with South Australia in Hobart.

South Australia were in control all match after declaring at 6/398 before bowling Tasmania out for 203 on the first innings and belting a 9d/233 in their second innings.

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It left Tasmania needing 429 runs to pull off the unlikeliest of victories — but the hosts gave it an awfully good shake.

Top-order batter Tim Ward hit 142, continuing his stellar form for Tasmania, making it three fifties and a century in five innings this Sheffield Shield season as he anchored the innings.

But he was more than ably assisted by an 81-ball 65 from Jake Weatherald, 65 from captain Jordan Silk, 69 from Bradley Hope and a swashbuckling 39-ball 53 from Mitchell Owens.

With two overs remaining, Tasmania still needed 16 off the last 12 balls, with Lawrence Neil-Smith hitting a single before Owen blasted a six.

It meant Tasmania needed nine runs off 10 balls remaining with four wickets in hand and needed nine runs to win.

The game is never over until it’s over. Photo by Steve Bell/Getty Images

However, in one of the great fightbacks in Shield history, South Australia bowled Tasmania out for 426, taking four wickets including one of the great brain fades on the final ball of the innings to claim a famous two-run victory.

After Nathan McAndrew took the wickets of Owen and Matt Kuhnemann in successive balls in the penultimate over, Wes Agar went for three runs off his first five balls, including the wicket of Gabe Bell meant Tasmania needed four runs off the final ball to win, three to tie and not to lose a wicket to draw.

No. 11 Riley Meredith faced the ball, giving himself width but only just getting the ball out of the circle.

But instead of just taking the single and finishing with a draw, Meredith ran back for the second despite Neil-Smith settling for the single.

It means Meredith was left halfway down the pitch as Ben Manenti threw the ball to Wes Agar as South Australia stole the victory.

Meredith went back for the second. Photo: X

Meredith’s Hobart Hurricanes teammate Paddy Dooley was dumbfounded on the commentary after he gave away what would have been a draw.

“Poor old Riley Meredith, I think he was in Big Bash mode there, thinking, ‘let’s get as many runs as possible’,” Dooley said on Kayo.

“Unfortunately, the game awareness wasn’t there. That’s unfortunate for Tasmania.”

Commentator David Lithgow said: “I don’t know what he’s done that for … I’ve never seen anything like it.”

The cricket world was in disbelief over the wild finish — and the all-time brain fade from Meredith.

“I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a more ridiculous finish in a Sheffield Shield match. South Australia gifted full points on the final delivery with Riley Meredith needlessly running himself out. Crazy. Crazy. Crazy!” commentator Adam White tweeted.

Fox Sports’ Will Faulkner posted: “Four to win off the last ball of the match, nine wickets down … and Meredith gets run out coming back for a meaningless second run?! Insane finish to the #SheffieldShield match between @SACricketTeams and @crickettas.”

CODE Sports’ Daniel Cherny wrote: “Extraordinarily poor game awareness from Riley Meredith.”

Nine and SEN’s Tom Morris added: “Wild stuff in the Shield. Tasmania needed 4 from 1 v SA. 9 down, Riley Meredith on strike to Wes Agar.

“Bunts it to cover. They run one. For some unknown reason try to come back for 2. Three never on. Run out. SA win. Donald/Klusener type silliness.”

Riley Meredith would have wanted that one again. Photo by Will Russell/Getty Images

Cricket statistician Ric Finlay posted: “There has never been a 1-run margin in Sheffield Shield games, so today’s win by SA over Tas by 2 runs is the equal closest win by runs ever. It shares this accolade with its team of 1999 (v WA), WA v NSW (1998), and NSW v WA (2003)”.

News Corp’s Jon Tuxworth tweeted: “Could be the dumbest thing I’ve seen on a cricket field. What’s he thinking.”

Another called it “One of the most brain dead pieces of cricket I’ve ever seen”.

But for South Australia, it’s got to go down as one of the best wins in their modern history.

“I thought we were gone, then back in it, then gone again and back in it,” South Australia’s captain Ben Manenti said.

“I was content with the draw more than anything.

“But Wes nailed six beautiful yorkers back to back. Forty minutes ago I thought they would (win) it five down.

“Realistically we needed two wickets and they needed six runs. They could have hit six singles to the deep guy and walked it home.

“Hell of a game of Shield cricket.”

The result — and other results of the round — mean that after six matches, South Australia are top of the ladder, one point ahead of Victoria and five ahead of NSW.

The Redbacks have not won a Sheffield Shield competition since 1995/96 and have only made the final twice since then — in 2015-16 and 2016-17.

Since last lifting the Shield, the state has finished last in the competition 15 times in 28 seasons.

Originally published as ‘Insane’: Riley Meredith torched over ‘dumbest thing I’ve seen on a cricket field’