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MELBOURNE: Veteran Peter Siddle’s three-wicket haul and Marcus Stoinis’ gutsy knock propelled Melbourne Stars to an eight-wicket victory over Hobart Hurricanes in the fifth match of the Big Bash League (BBL) 15 here at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Thursday.
Set 159, Melbourne Stars hit the winning runs on the last ball of the 15th over with eight wickets in hand.
Thomas Rogers and Joe Clarke stitched 46 in 5.3 overs to provide the home side a strong start.
Rogers hit six fours in his 30 from 18 before getting caught on Rishad Hossain’s bowling.
Two overs later, Joe Clarke was also sent back for run-a-ball 20, leaving Stars two down for 58 in 7.3 overs.
This was the only silver lining for Hobart Hurricanes, who then faced a boundary-laced storm from Campbell Kellaway and skipper Marcus Stoinis.
The duo forged a 101* run partnership from 51 balls, which kept Hurricanes bowlers at bay.
Eventually, Stars reached the target without any major hiccup as Kellaway remained unbeaten on 41 from 27 balls with the help of five fours.
On the contrary, Stoinis’ innings was laced with seven fours and two maximums. The skipper made 62 from 31 deliveries.
For Hobart Hurricanes, Rishad Hossain managed to take two wickets.
Earlier, after being put into bat first, Hobart Hurricanes ‘ power-packed batting lineup was curtailed to 158-9 in their 20 overs.
The visitors were jolted with two early blows as opener Mitchell Owen (8) and Rehan Ahmed (1) were back in the pavilion in the space of two balls.
Consequently, Hurricanes were reduced to 10-2 in 1.1 overs with Ben McDermott and Nikhil Chaudhary at the crease.
The duo tried to stabilize the innings with a brief partnership of 26 runs, but Marcus Stoinis hit them back with Chaudhary’s wicket in the fifth over, who could only add seven to the total.
For Hurricanes, two of their senior batters Tim David and McDermott were at the crease, which helped their cause with an 83-run partnership, although not in quick time.
The duo brought the scoring to 119 in 15.3 overs with McDermott remaining the core aggressor, while David’s sluggish 31 from 31 was ended by Siddle.
Yet, they reached a respectable total of 158, thanks to Ben McDermott’s 69 from 52 with the help of two sixes and five fours.
For Melbourne Stars, Peter Siddle starred with the ball, scalping three in his four, while Haris Rauf and Marcus Stoinis picked up two each.
