Brisbane Heat’s Chris Lynn and Brendon McCullum post half-centuries before rain forces an early end to BBL match in Sydney
Match Report:
ScorecardBash Brothers fire in Heat’s DLS win
The match in a tweet: Rain brings an early end to BBL clash at Spotless as Bash Brothers lead Heat to back-to-back wins #BBL|08
The score: Brisbane Heat 8-186 from 20 overs (McCullum 56, Lynn 54; Cook 3-27) defeated Sydney Thunder 2-34 from 5.3 overs (Ferguson 16; Pattinson 1-6, Doggett 1-8) by 15 runs on Duckworth-Lewis-Stern
The hero: After a lean run to start BBL|08, former Brisbane Heat skipper Brendon McCullum rediscovered some of his best form with a rapid 56 from 35 balls, highlighted by four sixes and three boundaries against Sydney Thunder. McCullum, a top-quality performer in T20 competitions around the world, started the tournament with scores of 4, 4, 8 and 14. Desperately chasing runs, he was watchful early in his innings before accelerating and featuring in two partnerships of substance (76 with Max Bryant and 65 with Chris Lynn) to lay the foundations for a big total.
The supporting cast: Heat skipper Lynn registered his second half-century of the tournament and gave the crowd at Spotless Stadium plenty of entertainment in the process. Lynn finished with 54 from 30 balls (including four sixes) and hit the ball to all parts of the ground. Youngster Bryant also impressed again with 36 from 23 balls.
The consolation act: Thunder off-spinner Jono Cook finished a fine spell with the wickets of Lynn and Ben Cutting in consecutive balls but was denied the opportunity to claim a hat-trick, with bowlers limited to four overs. Cook returned 3-27 in a career-best BBL performance in his sixth match after making his debut on December 24.
The collapse: After they looked on track to become the first team to reach 200 in BBL|08, the Heat suffered an incredible collapse, losing 5-2 in 12 balls. The visiting side raced to 2-155 in the 15th over but soon found themselves 7-157 before posting an 8-186.
The shot: You simply must watch this massive blow from Shane Watson as he smacked a delivery from Mujeeb Ur Rahman out of the ground.
The big wicket: Englishman Jos Buttler has been in red-hot form in BBL|08, hammering three half-centuries in his first six knocks of the tournament at the top of the order. After the Heat posted a formidable score, Buttler again shaped as a key man, but it was not to be his night as the wicketkeeper-batsman was trapped lbw by James Pattinson for just five. The pair could reunite in the Ashes later this year.
#BBL08's leading run-scorer departs for the final time this season. A rare failure for Jos Buttler, who's been a pleasure to watch in his short time here! pic.twitter.com/4M0QmXtrx8— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) January 8, 2019
The departures: Buttler and Joe Root have played their last game for the Thunder this season and will depart for international duties. Kiwi big-hitter Anton Devcich and England allrounder Chris Jordan will replace them for their next match against Adelaide Strikers.
The next stops: The Heat will next face Melbourne Renegades at the Gabba on Thursday, while the Thunder will host Adelaide Strikers on Sunday at Spotless Stadium.
Thunder XI: Shane Watson (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Callum Ferguson, Joe Root, Jason Sangha, Daniel Sams, Chris Green, Gurinder Sandhu, Sam Rainbird, Jono Cook, Fawad Ahmed
Heat XI: Brendon McCullum, Max Bryant, Chris Lynn (c), Matthew Renshaw, Jimmy Peirson (wk), Marnus Labuschagne, Ben Cutting, James Pattinson, Brendan Doggett, Mitch Swepson, Mujeeb Ur Rahman