Day three at the Twenty20 Champions’ League, and it was time for Somerset to take the stage. First, however, the Cape Town Cobras sealed a place in the next round with an emphatic 54 run win over the Otago Volts. Cobras captain, Andrew Puttick, became the first player to score a century in the tournament. They look to be a very good side.
In Somerset’s game against the Deccan Chargers Justin Langer won the toss and elected to bowl first. The Hyderabad faithful enjoyed the first few overs as Adam Gilchrist and VVS Laxman set about the Somerset bowling. However, wickets fell, and eventually the Chargers were restricted to 153.
Somerset were pretty much always up with the required run rate, but they too kept losing wickets. At 99-7 and with light rain falling they looked out of it, but James Hildreth and Alfonso Thomas put together a heroic partnership for the 8th wicket. When the final over came around, Somerset needed 5 runs to win off 6 balls.
Veteran New Zealander, Scott Styris, was chosen to bowl the final over, and with his first ball he clean bowled Hildreth. Young Max Waller came out to bat and obviously had no clue, but he had just enough talent to launch a skier off his second ball. It was a cricket equivalent of a sacrifice fly. Styris pouched the catch, but Thomas was now on strike. Five runs were still needed, Somerset had only one wicket left.
The next ball was a bad one, and Thomas dispatched it to the boundary for four. Scores level. And off the final ball of the game Thomas hit another four to grab the win for Somerset.
Boring game, this cricket, eh?
So, a good start for the Sabres, but the Indian teams are now 0-3 for the tournament. And they’ve lost two very close games. That won’t please the locals much.
Tomorrow Brett Lee’s NSW Blues take on the other English side, Sussex Sharks. There will be some Ashes-style rivalry in that. Also the Delhi Daredevils face a must-win game against the Wyamaba Elevens from Sri Lanka.
Nailbiting stuff. So glad Somerset won. But don’t call Scotty a veteran – it makes me feel so old! 🙂
Congrats on Somerset winning. The team game up big on the road. I hope it helps get better coverage for the next game.
Max Waller did have a clue and did exactly what was expected of him. He gave the strike to thomas. As to having ‘just enough talent’, i’d like to think that taking two wickets yesterday proved he had more than that!
in fact what i meant to say was ‘cheeky bitch’!!!!!!!!!!!!
Julie:
Proper batsmen rotate the strike by scoring singles, not by getting themselves out. Also the ability to take wickets says nothing about someone’s ability as a batsman. If you want to fling insults at me, at least try to make sense.
The reason he is in the side is for his bowling aptitude, not his batting; if you were listening to the commentary who would have heard that, that was probably the best shot of Max Waller’s career. I guess it wasn’t a particularly enviable postion to be in for such a youngster and one would hope that a Somerset supporter would appear to give him credit for his efforts and not by suggesting that he had ‘just enough talent to launch a skier’. The last comment was an insult it was a statement of fact!
Julie:
No one is in a Twenty20 side just for their bowling. You have to be able to field, and at least know what you are doing with a bat. Max did a great job by getting off strike, but if he had been a better batsman he would have got a single instead. And he would have done it off his first ball, not off his second.
I’m guessing that you are related to him, or have a crush on him or something. That’s fine by me. You’ve made your point. Now go and throw a strop somewhere else, please.
[Post deleted for childish petulance]