Sam Harper hit a career-best innings to lead Melbourne Renegades to a six-wicket BBL victory against Hobart Hurricanes. Harper has struggled in his previous five BBL digs, averaging 5.40 with three ducks. His latest attempt got off to a bad start as his hesitancy led to the dismissal of returning Test squad member Marcus Harris.
BBl12, Finch left baffled as ball-tracking goes missing
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However, he instantly refocused and went into a rhythm at Marvel Stadium, blasting 89 off 48 pitches. The inning included seven sixes before Harper was caught by Tim David off Nathan Ellis. Renegades won with 11 balls to spare thanks to Jon Wells and Will Sutherland. Renegades are now in the top half of the table, chasing a finals spot after three straight wooden spoons, while Hurricanes are falling farther behind. Riley Meredith’s fumbled catch on 59 gave Harper a lifeline, the Hurricanes’ 15th in eight games.
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They were forced to pay the following over, as Renegades took the power surge, with Harper hitting 26 off Joel Paris. Finch is perplexed when ball-tracking goes missing. Earlier in the contest, the Renegades believed they had Hurricanes starter Caleb Jewell caught lbw by Mujeeb Ur Rahman in the second over. When the hitter was called out, they went upstairs for a review, and Snicko verified there was no bat involved. However, the third umpire said that ball tracking was not accessible, therefore the on-field call remained.
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Jewell, who was on 1 at the time, escaped, leaving Renegades stand-in skipper Aaron Finch perplexed. “It just does not make sense, does it? I’m not sure how to describe that “During the Fox Cric broadcast, Finch said. Jewell poured salt in Renegades’ wounds two balls later when he smashed Mujeeb for six.
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Jewell was finally defeated by Tom Rogers, who shared the score with fellow starter Ben McDermott. Rogers was also effective in the field, dismissing the dangerous Matthew Wade and Tim David with straight blows, while Kane Richardson bowled well.
The Hurricanes experienced a pre-match setback when left-arm spinner Patrick Dooley sustained a finger injury during the warm-up. Dooley, the Hurricanes’ top wicket-taker and most economical bowler this season was sent to the hospital for an X-ray. Paris was brought in to fill in for him.
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