The Perth Scorchers made it two KFC T20 Big Bash League wins in a row after they toppled the Brisbane Heat by 10 runs at the WACA on Thursday.
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A sell-out crowd in Perth saw the hosts get off to a flyer as captain Marcus North (40) and Herschelle Gibbs (38) started brilliantly, but good Brisbane bowling saw the hosts pegged back to a score of 8-162.
In response, Peter Forrest (59) and Matthew Hayden (33) were dismissed at bad times as Brisbane battled to 6-152 from their 20 overs.
Needing above eight runs an over to win, the Heat needed a fast start, only for opener Chris Lynn (four) to last just two overs before he was well-caught by Brad Hogg at cover off the bowling of Nathan Rimmington (2-36).
Forrest joined Hayden (33) at the crease and the pair set about setting a platform, mixing good cricket shots and patience with boundaries.
Just when Hayden seemed set to launch, he was lured down the wicket and stumped by a terrific Hogg (1-26) delivery.
The scoring rate dropped off and for 25 deliveries, not a boundary was hit, until Forrest found his range and smacked a much-needed six off Nathan Coulter-Nile (0-28).
Hogg and Michael Beer (0-19) kept things tight though and although the occasional boundary from Forrest kept Brisbane alive, Andrew Robinson (19) was struggling to score quickly and eventually departed when he mistimed a pull shot to North at mid-wicket.
Forrest was clean bowled by Ben Edmondson (2-33) just five balls later and Roelof van der Merwe was run out at the strikers end via a direct hit from the deep from Nathan Coulter-Nile.
Dan Christian (nine) also fell late in the piece and despite the efforts of Michael Neser (11 not out) and Chris Hartley (four not out), they were simply left with too much to do at the death.
Earlier, Gibbs and North threatened to take the game away from Brisbane with a stunning exhibition of batting.
They attacked from the word go and Gibbs showed his intentions when he flicked Ryan Harris (1-35) for six over mid-wicket from just the fourth ball of the match.
North got in on the act shortly after and the Brisbane quicks had no answer as the Scorchers added 50 inside five overs and scored 68 from the six-over batting powerplay, which was eight more than the previous best in the Big Bash League.
Boundaries were frequent and with the score at 0-80 in the eighth over, the sky was the limit for Perth.
But as always in the Twenty20 format, the best way to halt momentum is to take wickets, with Christian (2-27) finally removing Gibbs when he bottom-edged onto his stumps.
Spinner van der Merwe (1-30) got in on the act and bowled North with a quicker ball and Mitchell Marsh (33) could have joined him in the pavilion shortly after, only to be dropped by Alister McDermott (0-25) on 14 as he spilled a return catch.
Marsh immediately made Brisbane pay with two sixes off van der Merwe in the next over but it was another spinner, Nathan Hauritz (1-16), who made the breakthrough as he bowled Simon Katich (nine) around his legs.
Neser (2-23) was bowling quickly and caused some serious pain for Marsh when he was hit in the crown jewels by a full toss, with the all-rounder shaken and dismissed two balls later when he skied to Hayden.
Luke Ronchi (two) was caught behind off the next ball as Neser continued to impress, with Paul Collingwood (14), Nathan Rimmington (seven) and Brad Hogg (two) also falling in the hunt for late runs.
Brisbane finished superbly to give themselves a fighting chance with the bat but they left their run too late as their winless streak continued.
