Heat hold nerves to clinch a nail-biter against Stars
Spencer held his nerves to seal the win [Source: Twitter]
Brisbane Heat held their nerves to defeat the Melbourne Stars by 4 runs in the Big Bash League game on Sunday.
With that close-fought win, Heat have jumped to the third place and look assured of a place in the knockout stages of the competition.
Hain-Peirson show dismantles Stars
With the top-order struggling for runs in this crucial match, the onus was on the middle order to do the rescue job.
At one stage, Brisbane Heat were tottering at 55 for 4 and looked down and out. But in came the duo of Sam Hain and Jimmy Peirson and things took a positive U-turn for them.
The wicket settled in well and the duo took advantage of it. All the pressure that the Stars applied was vanished and the game tilted in Heat's favour. The duo took a special liking towards Liam Hatcher - as he went for 54 in the allotted four overs.
Hain looked in great touch and was the aggressor in the partnership. Meanwhile, Peirson looked scratchy in the beginning, but as the dust settled, he too complimented Hain toe-to-toe.
Hain remained unbeaten on 73, and was amply supported by his partner, Peirson who was standing at the other end at 57 as the deadly duo added 133 runs to steer their side to a healthy 188 on the board.
So near, yet so far for Stars
Almost everyone got a start, but no one converted it into a match-winning score. Perhaps Joe Clarke's (31 off 32) became the difference between the two teams as it eventually turned out to be a nail-biter.
Thomas Rogers tried hard and looked comfortable against a quality Heat bowling attack. Till the time he was there, things were still in hand for the Stars, but once he departed for (41 off 20), the panic button was pressed once again.
Campbell Kellaway didn't do justice to his start and was sent packing by Mitch Swepson for a scratchy 23-ball 25.
With the required rate climbing up, Marcus Stoinis and Hilton Cartwright took the impossible challenge and nearly pulled off an heist. They attacked and attacked, but the total was a bit too much as they faltered and ended their innings on 184 for 3, losing the game by 4 runs.
Brief Score
Brisbane Heat: 188-4 (20)
Sam Hain 73* (41), Jimmy Peirson 57* (43);
Luke Wood 2-38 (4), Nathan Coulter-Nile 1-29 (4)
Melbourne Stars: 184-3 (20)
Thomas Rogers 41 (20), Marcus Stoinis 36 (23);
Mitchell Swepson 2-23 (4), James Bazley 1-15 (2)
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