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Maddinson, Hughes tons get NSW home

Blues pair crash centuries to help their side past Bushrangers' 309 at North Sydney

Centuries from Nic Maddinson and Daniel Hughes have propelled NSW Blues a seven-wicket win over Victoria Bushrangers to keep their Matador BBQs One-Day Cup title defence on track.

Maddinson (112 from 89 balls) and Hughes (122 from 121) set up the Blues' successful pursuit of 310 with a bruising 192-run second wicket stand at North Sydney Oval.

Maddinson turns match with ton


While the Bushrangers had three batsmen pass 50 - Cameron White (69), Glenn Maxwell (67) and Aaron Finch (52) - the deciding factor in the match was Hughes and Maddinson converting their starts and kicking on to each post three figures.

"We had good contributions from the top order but they (NSW) had two guys who got a hundred and that was probably the difference in the game. We probably needed another 20 or 30," Bushrangers skipper Matthew Wade said after the match.  

A total in excess of 400 looked on the cards when Bushrangers openers White and Finch played superbly to race to 124 inside 20 overs.

The loss of both players within five balls of each other – Finch perhaps a touch unlucky after replays indicated the ball hit the batsman outside the line of off-stump – failed to slow the run rate with Maxwell delving deep into his bag of tricks to wow the crowd on a picture perfect day in Sydney.

Maxwell pulled out his trademark reverse sweeps and the switch-hits in his stunning 41-ball innings, but as he looked certain to register a century, and perhaps considerably more, he missed a reverse lap off Trent Copeland (2-74) to be trapped plumb in front.

Maxwell crashes entertaining half-century


The allrounder’s dismissal sparked a collapse of 3-11 to halt the innings, vanquish any ideas of a monster score, and restricted the visitors to an under-par score of 309.

Speedster Pat Cummins (1-40) again bowled with good pace while Doug Bollinger claimed the best figures with 3-48 from 9.3 overs.

Peter Siddle (1-45) continued his impressive return from injury with another sharp spell, removing in-form opener Ed Cowan (5) in the seventh over.

Big-hitting Finch returns with 52


From there it was a one-way street with Maddinson delivering the innings he’s been promising all tournament, crashing 13 fours and five sixes in 117 minutes of carnage.

"For my first 20 balls I felt like I was batting with a stump," Maddinson said after play. "I felt like I had been training well so it was only going to be so long before a good score was going to be around the corner.

"I haven’t been in the greatest of form but I’ve been really looking forward to bat every time.

"I was trying not to panic and stress about it too much.

"The way they started it could have been a bit of a disaster but it does make it easier when you’re only chasing a score which you think you can get."

After hitting Jon Holland’s first ball out of the ground Maddinson looked to go big again but was caught on the long-off rope to end his blitzkrieg to the applause of a supremely entertained audience. 

Hughes hammers maiden List A hundred


Hughes was given a life on 82 when Peter Handscomb spilled a chance at point, the only opportunity the 27-year-old offered en route to his maiden one-day century for the Blues.

In-form White blazes another half-ton


While it took 33 overs for Holland, Australia’s most recently capped Test player, to be introduced into the attack he wasted no time in first removing Maddinson and then NSW skipper Moises Henriques, who drilled the spinner to Dan Christian at cover to fall for 10.

Maxi's switch blitz a mixed bag


Holland captured a third when he spun one through the gate of Hughes, but at that point – 4-272 – the match was in the hands of the hosts who were not letting go.

Kurtis Patterson (27no) and Peter Nevill (21no) iced the game to move the Blues into third place on the competition table. A spectacular 67 from Glenn Maxwell lit up North Sydney Oval as the Victoria Bushrangers posted 309 in their Matador BBQs One-Day Cup clash against NSW Blues on Sunday.