Sixers cruise past Strikers to be back on top of BBL|10

The match in a tweet: Sixers back on top! Sydney boys cruise off the back of classy knocks from Philippe & Vince #BBL10

The score: Adelaide Strikers 4-150 (Wells 66, Weatherald 34no; Christian 1-22) lost to Sydney Sixers 3-151 (Vince 45no, Philippe 41; Rashid 3-18) by seven wickets with 12 balls to spare

The points: Sixers 4, Strikers 0

The hero: Sixers opener Josh Philippe (41 off 24) burst out of the blocks in the run chase, making a mockery of what bordered on a go-slow approach from the Strikers at times through their batting innings. At is best, the right-hander is one long highlights reel and there was no shortage of delightful stroke-play tonight. He was ultimately undone by the best in Rashid Khan, and later admonished himself in a TV interview for trying to cover drive the Afghan spinner, but it was an innings that set up the match for the Sixers.

The support cast: The Sixers have serious quality right through their batting order and their cool heads tend to prevail; tonight Englishman James Vince (45no) and Sydney product Jordan Silk (38no) put their hands up with typically classy displays to see their side home. With the ball, Dan Christian (1-22 off four) and Lloyd Pope (0-15 off three) went at fewer than six per over to stymie the Strikers both towards the top of the innings and through the middle overs.

The experiment: The Strikers switched up their batting order with Matt Renshaw opening for the first time in his BBL career and Jake Weatherald coming in at five, also for the first time. Was it successful? Well, it was half-successful; Renshaw missed out but Weatherald worked his way into his innings and finished with a solid cameo of 34no from 24 balls.

The tactic: Perhaps they assessed the pitch as a challenging one to bat on, perhaps they simply backed their bowling attack … whatever the case, the Strikers batsmen appeared content with ticking along at a run a ball through much of their innings. In fact, from the two-over Power Surge, they returned 1-7. Only a late flurry from Jono Wells and Jake Weatherald helped them to a decent total, and when the Sixers raced to 0-47 in the fifth over, it seemed a head-scratching approach.

The debutant: After conceding a miserly seven from his first two overs, Sixers new boy Jake Ball lost his line and length in his final two. Bowling the 18th and 20th overs of the innings, Ball went for 35 runs to completely shift the complexion of the Strikers innings. Ultimately it didn't matter, but the Sixers brains trust will be hoping for something more consistent from the Englishman next time out.

The consolation efforts: Rashid carried the hopes of the Strikers on his shoulders, and he was typically valiant in defeat, removing both Sixers openers before then accounting for their captain, Dan Hughes. With the bat, Wells (66) was largely responsible for getting the Strikers to 150.

The stat: Philippe is back atop the run-scorers list for BBL|10, with his tally of 261 narrowly ahead of next-best Glenn Maxwell on 249.

The next stops: The Sixers now head to Perth for a clash with the Scorchers on January 6, while the Strikers head home for a four-day break before taking on the Renegades at Adelaide Oval.