BBL 7, Match 8, Review: Brisbane Heat clinch thriller off the penultimate ball courtesy Joe Burns

Brisbane Heat clinched a heart-wrenching thriller off the last ball against Sydney Thunders at the iconic Gabba thanks to the wonderful knock from Joe Burns and Alex Ross. The match was shortened to 17-overs per side due to persistent rain as the teams played one heck of a game. Burns kept his nerve against Andrew Fekete in the last over and delivered when it needed the most for his team. However, BBL continues to thrill the spectators with most of the games going until the last over and the upcoming matches promise more as the tournament goes deep.

The skipper of the visiting team, Shane Watson, won the toss and opted to bat first but rain halted the game only after 4.1 overs with their score reading 23 after the loss of Kurtis Patterson. The play was stopped for almost 20 minutes due to which the overs were lost and the match was reduced to 17-overs side per side. Watson then took over the charge of the play and smashed some quick boundaries to get going. But his partner Jos Buttler struggled and was castled by Pakistan sensation Shadab Khan.

Callum Ferguson then stitched a crucial stand for the third wicket with his skipper. Watson brought up yet another half-century but just when he was set to launch the final assault, Shadab came to the fore and foxed him in the 14th over. His partner though carried on and added some vital runs to propel his team to 149 after 17 overs. Shadab was excellent and finished with the figures of 2/27 after his four overs. Mark Steketee also bowled well upfront but went wicketless despite being economical.

Thrilling run-chase

The target was revised according to D/L method and the home side was set 151 runs for the victory. The chase was rocked early with one of their openers Brendon McCullum returning back to the dug-out in the very second over. Chris Lynn then stepped onto the field for a huge round of applause as he made his come back on the field from injury. He enjoyed his brief stay and smashed 25 off just 9 deliveries before being dismissed by Watson. Jimmy Peirson and Joe Burns then was brutal then in their assault and added 42 runs for the third wicket. The young Arjun Nair and McClenaghan then brought Thunders back into the contention.

However, Burns held firm on one end and continued battling for his side. Alex Ross also played patiently as the match went deep into the last two overs needing 21 runs. The left-arm pacer from New Zealand then bowled his heart out but conceded six off the last over and left Andrew Steketee with only 9 to defend. The bowler though kept his cool even after conceding a six off the second ball. He then conceded only a single run off the next two deliveries to bring down the equation to 2 off 2.

Ross’ heart was in his mouth as he hit the penultimate ball of the innings to the deep backward square leg only to be misjudged by Aiden Blizzard. He tried his best to reach the ball but palmed it over the boundary as Heat camp celebrated the victory wildly. Burns was the man though for the home side who played an unbeaten knock of 45 off 35 deliveries. Ross was also excellent with his quick-fire innings of 25 from nine cherries. He was awarded the Man of the Match for his match-winning knock on the day. Thunders were left heart-broken but they fought until the end despite not picking up wickets consistently.

Brief Scores

Sydney Thunder 149/4 after 17 overs (S Watson 56, C Ferguson 37; S Khan 2/27)

Brisbane Heat 153/4 after 16.5 overs (J Burns 45*, A Ross 25*; M McClenaghan 2/45)

Result: Brisbane Heat won by six wickets