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SYDNEY: Star batter Steve Smith opened up about denying a single to Babar Azam before the ‘Power Surge’ over during the Big Bash League (BBL) 15 clash between Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder.
Babar made 47 from 39 deliveries, hitting seven boundaries before getting cleaned up by Nathan McAndrew.
The wicket left Babar fuming, who was seen striking the boundary cushion with his bat.
The incident unfolded when Steve Smith denied Babar a single after the former had faced three consecutive dot balls.
In the very next over, Steve Smith completely capitalized on Power Surge — a strategic, two-over period the batting team chooses after the 10th over, where fielding restrictions are eased with only two fielders allowed outside the inner circle, hitting 32 runs in the over.
Speaking after the match, Smith revealed the reason behind his refusal to give Babar Azam a strike.
“We spoke at the ten-over mark, and they [the captain and coach] said take the surge straightaway,” Smith told Channel 7.
“I was like, ‘Nah, give it one over. I want to hit to the short boundary. I don’t want to screw up the first over. I’ll try to get 30 off that over’. [I] think we got 32, so it was a good result. Not sure Babar was too happy with me knocking back that single,” he remarked.
Nonetheless, Sydney Sixers cruised to a five-wicket victory while chasing a 190-run target.
Steve Smith starred with the bat, scoring a sublime 100 off 42 balls, striking nine sixes and five fours.
The emphatic win lifted the Sixers to fourth place on the BBL 15 points table, putting them firmly on course for a playoff berth.
They will now face fifth-placed Brisbane Heat in their final group-stage fixture on Sunday, with the result set to determine the last team to qualify for the playoffs.
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