BBL 2016-17 Final Review: Richardson, Klinger power Perth Scorchers to 3rd BBL title

It turned out to be a totally one-sided final of the KFC Big Bash League (BBL) as the Perth Scorchers defeated the Sydney Sixers by nine wickets at the WACA in Perth to clinch the BBL title for the 3rd time. Riding on top class bowling performances from Jhye Richardson, Tim Bresnan and Mitchell Johnson the hosts restricted the Sixers to 141 in their allotted 20 overs. While Bresnan and Richardson bagged 3 wickets each, Johnson was economical and conceded only 13 in his four overs.

The below par target never challenged the hosts whatsoever as they romped home by 9 wickets and with more than four overs left. Openers Sam Whiteman and Michael Klinger got them off to a rollicking start and the Sixers couldn’t recover from the early onslaught. Ian Bell was with Michael Klinger at the other end when the captain hit the winning runs to bring down the curtains on an eventful session of jam-packed T20 cricket.

Perth Scorchers captain Adam Voges won the all-important toss in the final and asked the visitors Sydney Sixers to bat. They got off to a poor start losing their first three wickets within 3 overs. Ashton Turner was smashed for a big six by Daniel Hughes in the 2nd over but he came back strongly to remove the southpaw in the final delivery of the same over. Hughes stepped out to hit it over the fence but only managed to hit it straight to the mid-off fielder.

Veteran left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson was at his fiery best and removed Michael Lumb in his 2nd over before hard-hitting southpaw Nic Maddinson was run-out in the same over. Lumb went for an expansive drive to a full outside the off stump delivery and edged it straight to the slip cordon. It was a brilliant start by the hosts which paved the way for their 3rd title in the KFC Big Bash League.

Also read: Twitter Reactions: Perth Scorchers lift their 3rd BBL title

Captain Moises Henriques and wicket-keeper Brad Haddin started rebuilding the innings and stitched together 57 runs stand for the 5th wicket. Henriques began with a pulled six of Jhye Richardson in the 4th over followed by a boundary of Andrew Tye in the 6th over. The run rate was still on the slower start but the duo of Henriques and Haddin was slowly stepping on the accelerator. Ashton Agar was smashed for consecutive sixes in the 8th over but just when they were threatening to post a competitive total both Haddin and Henriques surrendered their wickets at a crucial juncture of the game to reduce them to 79/5 in the 12th over.

Apart from Johan Botha, no lower-order batsman went beyond the double-figure mark as the visitors could only manage 141 in their allotted 20 overs. Botha scored 32 of 25 in the later part of the innings to propel the Sydney Sixers to a competitive total. Jhye Richardson and Tim Bresnan were the wreckers-in-chief as far as the Perth Scorchers were concerned with both finishing with 3 wickets each. Johnson was economical and finished with impressive figures of 1/13 in his allotted 4 overs.

Chasing a below par score to win BBL 6, Openers Michael Klinger and Sam Whiteman started taking on the Sixers’ bowlers from the outset and reached 61/0 at the end of the powerplay. Whiteman began with a boundary of Ben Dwarshuis in the opening over and followed it up with a hat-trick of fours and a six in the 2nd over of Jackson Bird. There was no respite for the bowlers as the southpaw smashed a couple more sixes in the 3rd over to take the score to 36/0 in the first 3 overs.

Klinger finally struck his first boundary in the first delivery of the 4th over and followed it up with a big six of Sean Abbott in the 5th over. Now it was the turn of Nathan Lyon to face the onslaught as he was smashed for a six and a four by Klinger in the 6th over. The party finally ended in the 8th over when Whiteman attempted a wild slog but failed to connect and was stumped by Brad Haddin standing behind the stumps.

Foreign recruit Ian Bell came into the middle and started off on a brisk note. While Klinger struck a four in the 2nd delivery of the 9th over, Bell added a couple more in the final two deliveries of the same over. Now it was the turn of Botha to get some treatment from Klinger as he was smashed for a gigantic six over the mid-wicket region in the 10th over. The rest was a formality from there. Both Klinger and Bell remained unbeaten to ensure the Perth Scorchers reached the victory target without any further hiccups. Klinger’s 49 balls 71 contained 5 and 5 sixes while Bell chipped in with 31 of 25 balls.

Klinger smashed a six of Sean Abbott in the final delivery of the 16th over to hand Perth Scorchers their 3rd BBL title in 6 years.

Brief Scores

Sydney Sixers 141/9 in 20 overs (Brad Haddin 38, Jhye Richardson 3/30, Tim Bresnan 3/40)

Perth Scorchers 144/1 in 15.5 overs (Michael Klinger 71*, Sam Whiteman 41, Nathan Lyon 1/28)

Perth Scorchers won by 9 wickets (with 25 balls remaining)