The Otago Volts took on the Wellington Firebirds at John Davies Oval, Queenstown on Tuesday, December 28. After winning the toss and electing to bat, Otago got off to a good start, with openers Hamish Rutherford and JJ Tasman-Jones putting on 41 for the first wicket, before the latter fell victim to Neesham at 35 (26).
The middle-order fell apart quickly, but Anaru Kitchen 54(34) and Michael Rippon 28 (25)* rebuilt the innings with a 75-run partnership for the sixth wicket. They were able to get closer to a reasonable total thanks to this collaboration. In the allotted 20 overs, they eventually scored 166/7.
The Firebirds used seven different bowlers, except captain Bracewell, and everyone chipped in with a wicket. James Neesham was the pick of the bowlers with his figures reading 3-0-17-2.
During the chase, Finn Allen and Tim Robinson teed off in the power play. Allen was flying before he got out to Bacon. He scored a quick-fire knock of 32 (13) which consisted of three fours and three sixes. While Robinson anchored the innings with his 65 (49).
Similar to Otago’s middle-order the Wellington's middle-order too crumbled. But thanks to their lower order batter, Nathan Smith, their run-chase was resurrected. Smith played an unbeaten cameo of 38 (18) consisting of four biggies.
As a result, the Firebirds chased the target with four balls to spare and won the match by five wickets. Rippon was the standout performer for the Volts as he took two wickets in his four overs along with a maiden to go with it. Jacob Duffy was too expensive as he conceded 50 runs in just 3.2 overs.
With this victory, the Firebirds moved up to fourth place on the table with eight points from five games, while the Volts languish at the bottom with six points from six games. Otago will play Auckland tomorrow, while Wellington will play Otago again on January 6, 2022.