Top Ad
I DIG Radio
www.idigradio.com
Listen live to the best music from around the world!
I DIG Style
www.idigstyle.com
Learn about the latest fashion styles and more...

Smith's career-best T20 knock puts Sixers in hunt for top spot

Written by 
Published in Cricket
Saturday, 21 January 2023 05:00

Sydney Sixers 187 for 2 in 19 overs (Smith 125*, Henriques 45*, Sandhu 2-42) beat Sydney Thunder 62 (Warner 16, O'Keefe 4-10, Abbott 3-11) by 125 runs

The BBL had already enjoyed a resurgent season, but Steven Smith produced one of its grandest performances in front of a packed SCG to keep Sydney Sixers in the hunt for the top spot with a crushing 125-run victory in the local derby against Sydney Thunder.
Smith followed his 56-ball hundred against Adelaide Strikers by matching that figure to the delight of the majority of the 38,757-strong crowd, after a slightly delayed start bringing the game down to a 19-over contest with rain briefly threatening to spoil the occasion, despite having battled back spasms earlier in the day.
Smith finished on a career-best 125* from 66 balls, peppered with nine sixes, as cross-town rivals Thunder had no answer as he dominated an unbeaten second-wicket of 155 with captain Moises Henriques. He became the second player in the BBL to score back-to-back hundreds after Ben McDermott.
However, the overall contest peaked with Smith's innings. The contrast with David Warner was stark. He took 17 balls to find the boundary as Thunder never threatened to make any sort of impression on the target.

Sensational Smith

After Sixers opted to bat, Smith was quickly into his stride, carving his second ball for four, playing a superb back-foot drive against Chris Green in the second over then sweeping Daniel Sams into the stands for his first six.

The home side were briefly set back when Gurinder Sandhu struck twice in the fourth over - Josh Philippe dragging on and Kurtis Patterson top-edging three balls after being dropped - but Smith was in the zone.

There was a period of consolidation where three overs from the fifth to the seventh did not produce a boundary before Smith deposited Joel Davies straight down the ground. That marked a gear change for Smith who went to fifty from 31 balls in an over where he again put Sams into the stands.

Smith was given a life on 51 when Usman Qadir spilled a return catch having already taken a painful blow on the hand. Smith sped into the 90s with two sixes in three balls off Sandhu in the 15th over before launching Qadir over wide long-on, his second fifty taking just 25 deliveries.

Smith's 125* was the highest T20 innings at the SCG, overtaking Shane Watson's 124 against India in 2016 and his performances have shone a light on his omission from Australia's T20 side, even if there were logical reasons behind it.

Henriques' painful supporting role

The Sixers' captain had one of the best seats in the house, although he copped a few blows for his efforts. He struggled somewhat early on and was 15 off 19 balls before sending Qadir over long-on, although by and large was able to leave the heavy lifting to Smith.

In the 14th over he was struck a painful blow on the chin when a throw from the outfield bounced on the edge of the pitch and missed his helmet. In the penultimate over he was then in the firing line from Smith himself when a fiercely struck drive off Sams hammered in his thigh at the non-strikers' end.

In the end, the third-wicket stand ended as Sixers' second-highest in the BBL and the highest partnership for that wicket in the tournament's history.

Warner struggles as Thunder slide

Warner's return to the BBL, after a much longer gap than Smith's, has brought nowhere near the same rewards for Thunder. There wasn't a lot he could do about the yorker he got from Riley Meredith against Hobart Hurricanes, and he played a useful hand against Melbourne Renegades, but this was a painful innings.

He didn't often have much of the strike - facing just 23 balls by the time he fell in the tenth over - but couldn't get his innings going and the frustration was clear. Eventually, he spooned a catch into the leg side against the wily Steve O'Keefe as Thunder's chase fell in a heap. Warner's final tally was the third slowest double-figure innings of his T20 career.

Thunder have endured some significant batting struggles this season, although with one game remaining can still make the finals.

Lyon sits out again

This is a watching brief at the moment, not quite a cause for major concern. For the second consecutive match, Nathan Lyon was kept on the sidelines as medical staff took a precautionary view of a knee niggle, described as a lateral meniscus irritation.

He will be assessed again ahead of Sixers' final regular-season match against Hobart Hurricanes on Monday, but there won't be any risks taken with the proximity of the India tour - plus the fact that Sixers are well-stocked for spinners, at least at the moment. They will have to use their bench strength when both Lyon and Todd Murphy, who bowled very tidily in this game, have departed for India. Smith will have gone, too, by then but has certainly left his mark on this year's tournament.

Andrew McGlashan is a deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo

Read 143 times

Soccer

Ange laments Spurs' wastefulness in Roma draw

Ange laments Spurs' wastefulness in Roma draw

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsLONDON -- Ange Postecoglou lamented his Tottenham Hotspur side's wa...

Amorim admits anxiety despite first Man Utd win

Amorim admits anxiety despite first Man Utd win

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsRuben Amorim has said his Manchester United side are causing him to...

Rasmus Højlund's performances could define Ruben Amorim's stint at Man United

Rasmus Højlund's performances could define Ruben Amorim's stint at Man United

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsMANCHESTER, England -- Manchester United are up and running under R...

2026 FIFA


2028 LOS ANGELES OLYMPIC

UEFA

2024 PARIS OLYMPIC


Basketball

Leaks, team meetings, losses: The factors driving the Sixers' dreadful start

Leaks, team meetings, losses: The factors driving the Sixers' dreadful start

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsTHE JULY 6 POST on Daryl Morey's Instagram page is even more perfec...

Injury-plagued Beal hobbles off in loss to Nets

Injury-plagued Beal hobbles off in loss to Nets

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsPHOENIX -- Suns guard Bradley Beal limped off the court in the four...

Baseball

Dodgers minor leaguer suspended for doping

Dodgers minor leaguer suspended for doping

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsNEW YORK -- Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Jose D. Hernandez was sus...

Crawford, 2-time WS champ with Giants, retires

Crawford, 2-time WS champ with Giants, retires

EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsSAN FRANCISCO -- Brandon Crawford is retiring after 14 major league...

Sports Leagues

  • FIFA

    Fédération Internationale de Football Association
  • NBA

    National Basketball Association
  • ATP

    Association of Tennis Professionals
  • MLB

    Major League Baseball
  • ITTF

    International Table Tennis Federation
  • NFL

    Nactional Football Leagues
  • FISB

    Federation Internationale de Speedball

About Us

I Dig® is a leading global brand that makes it more enjoyable to surf the internet, conduct transactions and access, share, and create information.  Today I Dig® attracts millions of users every month.r

 

Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: www.idig.com
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Affiliated