Twitter Reactions: Jason Roy, Colin Munro lift Perth Scorchers to the top of the table

Another day, another win. It has been that kind of a tournament for the Perth Scorchers after they made an ominous start – losing three in a row. They managed to restrict the Melbourne Stars to 171/6 after posting 182/4 in the 50th league fixture of the Big Bash League (BBL) 2020-21, to not just register their 8th win of the season but also displace the Sydney Sixers from the summit of the points tally on account of their superior net run rate.

After being inserted to bat by Stars’ skipper Glenn Maxwell, the opening duo of Jason Roy and Liam Livingstone took the Scorchers to a rollicking start, as they added 83 for the first wicket. While Livingstone struggled to find his timing and took his sweet time to settle, Roy, after spending a quiet first couple of overs, took the attack to Adam Zampa, as he whacked him for three fours and a six in the 19-run third over.

Jason Roy, Colin Munro shine for Scorchers 

The partnership was broken no sooner than the 10th over, when Zahir Khan ended Livingstone’s (24 from 29) stay, as the batsman tried to go inside out, only to find Maddinson at long-off. 5 balls hence, the Scorchers lost Roy, who struck 7 boundaries and a six in his 52 from 32, as Nathan Coulter Nile got him caught by skipper Maxwell. Denting the momentum, the Stars did manage a couple of quiet, boundary-less overs before Colin Munro opened his arms alongside Josh Inglis.

Situated at 110/2 after 14 overs, the Scorchers invoked the Power Surge, and though the first over did not materialize too well for them (they managed only 8 off Zampa), two sixes and a four from the Coulter Nile’s third over granted them the exact boost they opted the field restrictions for. Inglis and Munro added crucial 52 from 36 for the third wicket before the former, having scored 26 from 16, top-edged Stoinis to Seb Gotch behind the wickets in the 17th over.

At 5, Mitchell Marsh could not make his outing count as he failed to clear Maxwell at long-on off Zampa. Munro, who finished unbeaten on 46 from 30 with four fours and a couple of sixes, stitched a brisk 33-run stand with skipper Ashton Turner, who contributed 18 of those, as the Scorchers finished 182 for 4.

Larkin’s efforts in vain

During the chase, Jason Behrendorff made early inroads with the ball as Marcus Stoinis picked the fielder at long-on after scoring 14 from 11, whereas the Stars lost their other opener in the 6th over courtesy of an unfortunate run-out dismissal of Seb Gotch (18 from 20). Nick Larkin stood tall from his end, though he kept running out of support often from the other. Continuing with his forgettable form, skipper Maxwell fell for what was his third duck in this season, as he deposited Fawad Ahmed’s stock delivery to Turner at midwicket.

Larkin, who notched up his half-century from 29 balls, tried his best to keep Stars alive in the chase, as he rotated the strike and managed to pounce on every weak delivery, although the disciplined and controlled lengths of the opponents did not allow the Stars to make the move on they needed. Larkin added 62 with Nic Maddinson, who only contributed 18 before perishing to Richarson,  Hilton Cartwright slammed a couple of sixes during his 23 from 13 to infuse some hope after Andrew Tye struck in the 18th over, cleaning up Larkin at 70, although he could only drag the Stars to 171.