Cane Train rolls on as Heat season in tatters

The match in a tweet: D’Arcy the destroyer combines with young gun Jewell to help Hurricanes douse the Heat #BBL08

The score: Brisbane Heat 6-145 (Ross 62, Peirson 50; Faulkner 2-27, Moody 2-27) lost to Hobart Hurricanes 1-146 (Short 68no, Jewell 61no; Cutting 1-29) by nine wickets with 34 balls to spare

The heroes: Another match, another pulsating half-century from D’Arcy Short. The powerful Hobart Hurricanes left-hander posted his sixth half-century of this KFC BBL season to make light work of what appeared a competitive target. The opener took his tally for BBL|08 to 541 runs at 67.62 with an unbeaten 68 from 41 balls, clobbering eight boundaries and one six against a Brisbane Heat side that simply ran out of answers. Short combined with young left-hander Caleb Jewell (61 not out from 38 balls) for an unbroken 132-run stand after the in-form Matthew Wade (12) lost his wicket early. Jewell nailed down the vital No.3 position in his fourth match of the season, combining with Short for a superb partnership to improve their team’s record to 9-2. Short has been remarkably consistent in the T20 tournament over the past two seasons after a record-breaking BBL|07. He now has 12 Big Bash half-centuries to his name to go with one ton. It’s no wonder the Hurricanes have established themselves as red-hot favourites to claim the silverware after losing last season’s final.

The supporting cast: Jofra Archer ignited the Hurricanes with a memorable catch in third over of the match (more on that below) and two wickets in his first over. He finished with 2-28 from his four overs, while James Faulkner and David Moody – a late replacement for Riley Meredith (ill) – both collected 2-27 to restrict the Heat. 

The classic catch: Take a bow, Jofra! Was this the best catch of BBL|08? Ridiculous skills from the fast bowler.

The consolation acts: In just his fifth match of BBL|08, Alex Ross displayed his full range of strokes under pressure to post an impressive 62 from 35 balls. The Heat slipped to 4-27 during the Power Play after being sent in and looked on track for a below-par total, but Ross and Peirson (50 from 47 balls) then combined for a superb 109-run stand for the fifth wicket to steer their team out of deep trouble. Ross had made contributions of 5 not out, 4 and 0 entering this fixture, but he rebounded strongly with eight boundaries and a six, while Peirson hit three fours and cleared the boundary on two occasions.

The collapse: The Heat’s batting is centred around the Bash Brothers – Chris Lynn and Brendon McCullum – while young guns Max Bryant and Matthew Renshaw filled the other positions in the top four for the visitors in Hobart. But they were all dismissed in the first 5.2 overs, with the Heat losing 3-0 in four balls – across the fourth and fifth overs – to tumble to 4-27. 

The shot: This six from Peirson deserves another look.

The stat: The outstanding partnership between Ross and Peirson was the highest fifth-wicket stand in Brisbane Heat’s history.

The next stops: The Hurricanes will be looking to keep the momentum rolling when they face Adelaide Strikers on Thursday, while the Heat now look out of the finals race and will play the Scorchers on Friday.