BBL 2021-22: Boyce's efforts go in vain as Sydney Thunder steal a win vs Renegades in nail-bitter

The encounter between Melbourne Renegades and Sydney Thunder in Melbourne turned out to be an eventful one. While Thunder stole away a win by just 1 run, Renegades’ Boyce created history after he bagged four wickets on the trot to eventually end with a fifer.

The Sydney Thunder team had a brilliant start to the proceedings, courtesy an aggressive partnership between Alex Hales and Usman Khawaja. The two batters put on 80 runs on the board before Hales was undone on the final delivery of the seventh over for 44 off 22.

Unmukt Chand who made his BBL debut in the previous game took a good catch around the ling off region off Boyce. The spinner then came back for his second over and bagged wickets on the first three deliveries which included the dismissals of Jason Sangha, Ross and Daniel Sams.

The right-arm bowler just didn’t stop here and bagged his fifth wicket in the form of Matthew Gikes to eventually return with figures of 5/21 in 4 overs. But Khawaja held the fort for his side at the other end and chipped in with a valuable 77 off 51 that helped Thunder side to put 170/8 in 20 overs.

Later, the Melbourne Renegades suffered an early blow but Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh once again steadied the ship for the side with a 59-run stand before the latter departed for 19 off 16. Finch was then joined by Unmukt and the two compiled a total of 68 runs for the third wicket. Chand was eventually dismissed for 29 off 22 by Sangha.

While Renegades lost wickets at regular intervals, Finch tried to stick around and notched up 82 off 64 but he was eventually out on the third delivery of the final over.

The Renegades needed 2 off one delivery with Boyce on strike but he failed to take his side over the line as they were restricted to 169/7 in 20 overs. While Sams returned with impressive figures of 1/22 in 4 overs, Sandhu had three scalps to his name for 33 runs in his four overs and Sangha picked up a couple of wickets at the cost of 32 runs in his allotted 4 overs.

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BBL 2021-22: Melbourne Renegades' Cameron Boyce picks four wickets on the trot vs Sydney Thunder

Melbourne Renegades Cameron Boyce etched his name in record books after picking up four wickets on the trot against Sydney Thunder in Melbourne on Wednesday. The spinner first removed a dangerous looking Alex Hales for 44 off 22 on the final ball of his first over after the right-handed batsman was caught by Unmukt Chand who took a good running catch around the long off region. Boyce then returned for his second over of the innings and got the wicket of Jason Sangha on the very first delivery who was stumped out for 2 off 5 and followed it with Alex Ross’ dismissal. Ross tried to reverse sweep this hat trick delivery that was pitched touch fuller around the middle and leg stump channel but missed his stroke completely. The Renegades team appealed for an LBW and the on-field umpire raised his finger. The batsman wasn’t really happy with the decision but Boyce had completed his hat trick. The right-arm bowler didn’t stop here as he also got rid of Daniel Sams after trapping him in front of the stumps to send him packing for a golden duck on the third ball of this over to pick his fourth consecutive wicket. The leg-spinner continued his brilliant bowling show with another dismissal on the first ball of his third over. Matthew Gikes who had come in at number six drove a length delivery, pitched outside off straight into the hands of Lalor in the cover region to give Boyce his fifth scalp of the match. At the time of writing, the Thunder were 101/5 in 11 overs.

BBL 2021-22: Sydney Sixers register comfortable win against Brisbane Heat

Sydney Sixers registered a comfortable 27-run win over Brisbane Heat in Brisbane on Wednesday. Chasing 179 in 20 overs, were off to a struggling start as they lost some early wickets to get reduced to 43/4 in the 9th over. But opener Max Bryant and Jimmy Peirson then tried to provide some resistance to the side with a partnership of 84 runs for the fifth wicket but Peirson’s dismissal at 42 off 23 which was followed by Bryant’s wicket pushed the Brisbane side on back foot. Bryant notched up a 55-ball 56 but his efforts went in vain as the side was eventually restricted to 151/8 in 20 overs. Hayden Kerr returned with figures of 3/23 in 4 overs. Earlier, in the day, Sydney Sixers rode on some aggressive batting from the unit to put 178/6 in 20 overs on the board. Daniel Hughes top-scored with 59 off 45 while Henriques and opener Jack Edwards made some important contributions. While Henriques struck 28 off 18, Edwards scored 25 off 14. Neser had three scalps to his name at the cost of 39 runs in 4 overs for his side. "I thought 180 was a good score, but our bowlers did a good job with the ball in the back end. Nice and calm, stay in the present and we did that really well today. He (Henriques) is a great person and a great leader, looks after everyone and instills confidence. It's just another game of cricket and just stay really calm is the mantra," said Daniel Hughes.

Chappell-Hadlee series postponed indefinitely due to New Zealand quarantine issues

The Chappell-Hadlee ODI series and a T20 match between Australia and New Zealand have been postponed indefinitely due to New Zealand’s border controls and quarantine requirements. The two sides were slated to lock horns in three ODIs on January 30, February 2 and 5 respectively while the T20I was scheduled to take place on February 8. But the fixtures had now been postponed. "As we now know, the advent of Omicron prompted a change of heart from the NZ Government, resulting in a hard 10-day mandatory isolation period being imposed on all incoming travellers,” NZC chief executive David White said. “NZC and CA had explored a proposal to expand the tour and to push out the date on which the squad might return to New Zealand in the hope that might be more achievable for the Government.” "Unfortunately, we received advice this morning that they could not provide certainty over this,” he added. CA chief executive Nick Hockley expressed disappointment on the postponement of the matches but added that the two boards would look for the rescheduling. "We are extremely disappointed that we won’t be able to play the scheduled matches against New Zealand as planned, however we will continue to work with New Zealand Cricket to reschedule the series,” he said. “We thank NZC, who made every effort to make the series happen, however because they were unable to get certainty over return quarantine arrangements, it is simply just not possible at this time,” he added.

SL vs ZIM | 2nd ODI: Shanaka's hundred goes in vain as Zimbabwe make it 1-1

Zimbabwe turned the fortunes for themselves on Tuesday after they levelled the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka in Pallekele. The visitors defeated the Lankan Lions by 22 runs in the second ODI to make it 1-1. Batting first, Zimbabwe were off to a decent start after openers Takudzwanashe Kaitano and Chakabva put up a stand of 59 runs for the first wicket. But the dominance with the bat began when captain Craig Ervine walked out in the middle to bat. The visiting team lost the second wicket in the form of Chakbva (47 off 50) when the team score read 90. Ervine was then joined by Sean Williams and the two batters made an important contribution with a 106-run partnership for the third wicket. While Williams missed out on a fifty by just two runs, Ervine went on to notch up 91 off 98 deliveries. Later, Raza also chipped in with a half-century as Zimbabwe posted 302/8 in 50 overs on the board. The home side had a dismal beginning to the chase as they lost early wickets and were reduced to 63/4 in the 15th over itself. Shanaka and Kusal Mendis tried to steady the ship and provide the resistance with a partnership of 118 runs but Mendis’ departure for 57 broke the shackles and Sri Lanka were once again pushed on the back foot. Chamika Karunaratne replaced Mendis in the middle and built a 66-run partnership for the sixth wicket with the skipper. Shanaka was eventually undone for 102 off 94 deliveries and his dismissal broke the shackles as Sri Lanka lost a few more wickets at regular intervals to get restricted to 280/9 in 50 overs. Tendai Chatara and Blessing Muzarabani had three wickets each to their names. Ervine who was adjudged man of the match later talked about the track. “With the seamers it (the pitch) was quite easy to bat. Vandersay got a bit more purchase. Certainly more in it for the spinners today. Our seamers did so well upfront getting those early wickets. We are very happy with how it (team combination) looks. We will back them to come and do the job in the third game,” he said after the match. The two teams will now lock horns in the decider on Friday (January 21, 2022).