There is likely to be no shortage of entertainment in tonight's clash after the Alex Ross obstruction controversy
Hurricanes and Heat set for spicy match up
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There will be extra spice in tonight's KFC BBL clash between the Hobart Hurricanes and Brisbane Heat with the controversy over Alex Ross's obstruction dismissal simmering for nearly a week.
Last Wednesday the Hurricanes won a final-ball thriller to narrowly defeat the Heat on their home turf. Both teams have been inactive since, but return to the field for a rematch in Hobart tonight.
Heat-Hurricanes clashes have provided plenty of spark in recent times.
It was in this fixture in BBL|05 that Hurricanes allrounder Dan Christian hit Brisbane's Luke Feldman for a 117m six onto the roof of the Gabba.
And in the corresponding fixture a year later, the Heat's master blaster Chris Lynn launched Hobart speedster Shaun Tait even further to sail over the Gabba grandstand.
This summer, it was the wicket of Alex Ross that stole the headlines, and landed some folk in hot water for their reactions.
Ross was given out by the third umpire after he was deemed to have intentionally changed his course to impede the fielding side when diving in to complete a second run during the 17th over of the Heat's run chase.
Heat captain Brendon McCullum was left fuming by the decision and – along with coach Daniel Vettori, star batsman Chris Lynn and former Test opener Joe Burns – engaged in a protracted animated discussion on the sideline with the fourth official.
That exchange saw Burns fined $6,000 for a Code of Conduct breach by Cricket Australia, while former Brisbane Heat bowler and current CA High Performance Coach Ryan Harris also fined for taking to social media to protest the decision.
Harris' fine was suspended, and the fast bowling star said while he continued to disagree with the decision, he "could have done it a lot better".
“Yeah I was just trying to get my opinion out,” Harris told ABC Grandstand.
"I could have done it a lot better. But what I said, I’ll still stick to, but I probably wouldn’t say too much more because I might get a little bit less in the pocket.
“It was just an opinion I had at the time, so I thought I’d put it out there. But that’s just what I was thinking at the time, so that’s what I thought social media was for."
Ross also took to social media, to tweet that his change of direction was an attempt to avoid being hit by the return throw.
"You must always respect the umpires' decision, but I wanted to clear the air and state my intentions in the run last night," Ross wrote on Twitter.
"I can unequivocally say I was trying to run away from the line of the ball to avoid being hit, as I felt I was going to make my ground."
A CA spokesperson said while obstruction was a difficult Law to interpret, Ross's actions made the outcome clear.
"The dismissal last night of Alex Ross from Brisbane Heat saw the batsman change direction, turn to watch the direction of the throw, and run on the pitch," the spokesperson said.
"The third umpire concluded that the change of running direction of the batsman, after seeing the direction of the throw, obstructed the wicketkeeper’s opportunity to affect the run-out
"Obstructing the Field is one of the more difficult decisions to interpret as it is based on umpires assessing the intent of the batsman.
"After assessing footage of the incident alongside the Laws, playing conditions, and cues that umpires are provided, CA believe the Obstructing the Field decision from last night’s game is justified."
That contradiction between the CA view and Ross's testimony prompted Queensland Cricket to come out and back their man
“Given the highly subjective nature of the rule, I think it is crucial that the public understands that Alex and for that matter, all players and officials involved in the game, are people of integrity," Queensland Cricket chief executive Max Walters said
“Of course, the Umpire is always right and we congratulate the Hurricanes on their victory. As our Captain said last night, the Hurricanes probably deserved to win the match irrespective of one incident.”
The incident almost overshadowed some of the amazing on-field exploits from Hobart's stars.
D'Arcy Short underlined his rapidly rising stock with a maiden BBL century that peppered the Gabba grandstand with a flurry of sixes as the Indigenous star hit eight maximums.
And Jofra Archer continued to take the BBL by storm, firstly with a ridiculously dismissive caught-and-bowled to send Ben Cutting packing, then following up with safe hands on the final ball to secure the visitors the win.
That performance helped convince Ricky Ponting that Hobart were a "dark horse" to be feared as the BBL Finals fast approach.
"The Hurricanes, right now, look the most dangerous team to me," Ponting told cricket.com.au.
"They shouldn't lose anyone (to Australia duties) either; they might lose D'Arcy Short to the T20 team right at the end.
"But they probably haven't played their absolute best yet. They've won four games in a row and there's still room for improvement there."
But it wasn't all roses for Hobart. The players were stung by fines for the club's slow over rate in the run chase, which puts skipper George Bailey on the brink of a one-game suspension if there is a repeat offence this season.
It all sets the scene for a massive showdown between two finals contenders this evening.