Sydney Sixers beat Brisbane Heat by 3 wickets, Dan Christian produces a masterclass
Sydney Sixers defeated Brisbane Heat in the latest BBL encounter by three wickets. The match went down to the wire with the Sixers needing 11 runs off the last over to reach 149. Dan Christian took his team to the victory on the final ball. The all-rounder scored 61 off 38 balls which included five sixes.
Dan Christian guides Sydney Sixers to their 6th BBL win this season
Chasing 149, the Sixers lost the in-form Josh Philippe in the second over. Jack Wildermuth's delivery got big on Philippe, and the batsman failed to get enough connection with his pull shot.
Coming in at No. 3, James Vince got a bit of a start but his poor BBL campaign continued as he managed only 15. Mujeeb Ur Rahman got the better of him in his first over. The Afghanistan international then cleaned up Jordan Silk and gave the Heat some hope of defending the total.
After ten overs, the Sixers were 60-4, and they claimed the BBL Bash Boost point. The game was on a knife-edge, and Daniel Hughes and Dan Christian batted sensibly. The Sixers needed 62 runs from the last six overs, but it all changed when Hughes and Christian took the BBL Power Surge in the 15th over.
Bowling the 15th over, Lewis Gregory conceded 17 runs, and then Dan Christian smoked three sixes off Mark Steketee to pick up 20 runs from the 16th over. The Sixers managed 37 runs from the two Power Surge overs.
However, James Bazley and Steketee pulled things back a bit as Daniel Hughes (51) and Carlos Brathwaite (2) were dismissed in quick succession. Christian though held his nerve and played a masterful innings, scoring 11 runs in the last over against Xavier Bartlett to see his side home.
Chris Lynn and Lewis Gregory help the Heat put up 148
Earlier, Sydney Sixers won the toss and put Brisbane Heat to bat first. The Heat lost their opener, Max Bryant early as he was dismissed for 10. Chris Lynn's experience kept the Brisbane Heat's innings together. After the first six overs, the Heat were 40-2.
Joe Burns and Joe Denly both departed for 7. After that, Lynn formed a decent partnership with Jimmy Peirson. The Heat took the BBL Power Surge in the 13th over when they were 77-3. The two overs yielded 32 runs, and it added the much-needed momentum to the Heat's innings. However, Jimmy Peirson was undone on 16 by Jake Ball in the Power Surge.
Subsequently, the Heat failed to get going and lost six wickets in their last seven overs. They were eventually bowled out on the penultimate ball of the innings. Chris Lynn's dismissal for 56 in the 16th over turned out to be the crucial point in the first innings.
Lewis Gregory's knock of 26 from 15 balls, which included two consecutive sixes off Dan Christian, helped the Heat to put up somewhat of a challenging total.
However, as it turned out, the Sixers were able to win the tie after losing some early wickets. With this win, the defending champions are back on top of the BBL points table.
Brief BBL score: Brisbane Heat 148 all out in 20 overs (Lynn 56, Ball 3-25). Sydney Sixers 152-7 in 20 overs (Christian 61*, Rahman 2-16)