Can one ball change a game - Hayden Kerr and the Sixers limp on ...
'Speaking of the BBL'
One ball can change a game. Is that a cliche, or a reality?
Change is definitive, no turning back. Most are familiar with the ‘fork in the road’ metaphor - a deciding moment in the course of time - we can all doubtless look back and find a time in our own lives that represents this. Good or bad, right or wrong - did you know at the time, at that very juncture? ‘Probably not’ - would be a non-cliched answer.
So why should we expect professional sports-people, athletes, to be different?
Only the most optimistic proponents of the ‘hindsight bias’ clan would have foreseen the eventual outcome.
Are they wired differently? Yes and no, but the reality is they are less likely to take the wrong road, they will intuitively take more risk because they have an intrinsic belief in their skill-sets, and judgment - this will lead them down the right path more often than not. Success in sport, so winning, will always be linked to the ‘probability of’
Alex Carey - Adelaide Strikers - missed stumping Hayden Kerr - Sydney Sixers - from the first ball of the innings. The Sixers were 0-0, Kerr was 0 - there were another 119 balls to bowl, and the Strikers had posted 4-167 - who would have guessed Kerr would go on to hit the winning runs from ball 123? Only the most optimistic proponents of the ‘hindsight bias’ clan would have foreseen the eventual outcome.
Add in a straightforward outfield chance from Kerr when his score was 16 - and you have a double fork, with neither proving to be the right road. Some mistakes are forgotten, lost in the flow of the game. They can be camouflaged by inspired individual action - instead, these two missed opportunities will only be illuminated by Kerr’s heroics.
Kerr was rightfully lauded for his match-winning innings - 98* from (58) with 10 fours and two maximums; this coming from a batter who had occupied a bottom four batting slot throughout the tournament.
Sean Abbott stood up when his team desperately needed him to. The 29-year old has been treading water with just one wicket in his last four games, adding in an over-par economy rate and some sketchy batting form; all was not well with Coach Shipperds’ blue stocks.
Extra bounce in the SCG deck was to his liking - this accounted for Matt Short who edged to slip. Next, he bowled Travis Head, who played too expansively, pegging back his middle stump, and then finished with the important wicket of Ian Cockbain.
When Dan Christian departed at 4-101 in the 14th over, the Sixers had plenty to do. Kerr and Abbott combined, taking the score to 5-156 - Abbott’s contribution of 41 from (20) - a partnership of 55 from 30 balls - leaving the last over thrills to Kerr. The rest is history; there was a lot in those last five balls!
Still, as the venerable David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd, and Harry Conway say - “Start the car, that’s all she wrote” Next time Harry.
BBL11 Final - Perth Scorchers v Sydney Sixers
The Perth Scorchers play their home BBL11 final at Marvel Stadium, hosting the Sydney Sixers. That’s right - the Furnace is no longer, likely to be turned into a walking track. The Labor/Greens seem to like the idea of walking tracks - ask the horse-racing industry!
Remarkably, this will be the fifth final contested between them, with the 2-2 deadlock to be broken tonight. If the Sixers prevail it will be a remarkable three-peat.
The Scorchers have the wood over the Sixers, beating them three times in January, and face a weakened opponent who limped into the final after rookie allrounder Hayden Kerr inspired a dramatic victory over Adelaide Strikers on Wednesday night.
A depleted Sixers will be without openers Josh Philippe and Jack Edwards, who have tested positive for Covid-19, while veteran spinner Steve O'Keefe and batter Jordan Silk suffered injuries during the Strikers' innings.
Top-order batter Daniel Hughes could be a welcome inclusion, having not played since injuring an ankle during the warm-up ahead of the qualifying final. I would say he is likely to play, filling Silk’s role. It is hard to see them going away from Hayden Kerr at the top of the order.
Mitchell Marsh has arguably been the most in-form T20 batter in the world since the World Cup. He is expected to line up tonight despite suffering hamstring tightness in their last game. The Scorchers will be at full strength.
How do you pick against the Sixers, or not pick the Scorchers!! Probability always plays out - a win for the Scorchers, with M McGowan watching on!
