Sixers secure second place in wild finish, a breakdown
What Happened
The Sixers and Scorchers are locked in a tight match with major playoff implications. In the final overs, the game comes down to a thrilling finish. With the Scorchers batting first, they post an impressive 197 runs. The Sixers' bowlers have kept them in the game, only conceding 2 wickets so far. Now, the Sixers need 17 runs off the final 12 balls to secure the second seed in the playoffs. Scorchers batter Jack Edwards steps to the crease, but his attempt at a big shot is caught by the Sixers fielder, sending him back to the pavilion. The next batter, Kerr, looks to keep the Scorchers' hopes alive, but he too is run out after an attempted two-run steal. Chaos ensues as the Scorchers' No. 21 batter, Ben, inexplicably leaves his crease and is bowled out. With the match hanging in the balance, Enrique comes to the crease for the Sixers. On the first ball he faces, he calmly dispatches it for six runs, bringing the equation down to 9 runs needed off the final 3 balls. Enrique then smashes another six to leave just 3 runs required off the last 2 deliveries. The Scorchers' captain tries to outsmart Enrique, ordering his bowler to target the off-side to prevent the powerful pull shot. But Enrique is undeterred, calmly running 4 runs off the penultimate ball to leave just 1 run needed off the final delivery. With the entire stadium on the edge of their seats, the Scorchers' bowler sends down a full toss that Enrique calmly flicks over the infield for 4 runs, sealing a thrilling victory for the Sixers. Enrique's ice-cool composure under pressure has secured his team the crucial second seed in the playoffs. This pulsating finish showcases the drama and excitement of cricket at its best, leaving fans and commentators alike thoroughly entertained. The Sixers' triumph is a testament to their resilience and Enrique's match-winning heroics in the clutch.
Full Transcript
Click timestamps to jump to that momentCheck out the play from the keeper here on the Scorchers.
The ball's going to get away from him.
The batter's trying to run.
He says, nah, hits it.
Did he get it in time?
He wants it.
It would be huge.
They need it.
Look at the jump throw with the gloves on.
Oh, did he get it?
Did he get it?
Let's take a replay.
No.
The bat is down on the ground, cross the line before the ball,
hits the wickets, so they did not get it.
Damn.
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Here we go.
The Strikers in pink need 17 runs off the next 12 balls to win this game,
and right after that almost play by the keeper,
we get this pop-up straight back, and the keeper's got to run,
just turn and run, and he makes the over-the-head grab.
Incredible play to get the out,
and that batter has to go.
He's done.
He's gone.
See you later.
Look at this play.
Full sprint with the gear on.
Finds it over his head, comes down with it.
Really cool play.
Awesome job.
So, ooh, Boulders fired up.
So that's a good wicket, an important one,
and this game is important because this is how they do the playoffs.
So in America, you probably aren't used to this.
It's actually somewhat cool.
The first and the fourth place team, four teams make the playoffs.
The first and the fourth play in this qualification,
a fire game, and the winner of that jettisons to the championship.
The loser of that isn't eliminated.
They go to the semifinal.
They call it a challenger.
And then the third and fourth place team play an elimination game.
Winner goes on to the semifinal, and so on.
So whoever wins this game is going to go to the second place seed,
and whoever loses is going to go to third.
So it's actually big shit at stake.
And the Scorchers had a pretty big innings.
They put up 197 runs,
but the Sixers are on a better pace
and have only conceded two wickets until the one that we just saw.
So some of you didn't understand any of that.
It makes sense.
You can figure it out.
Back to the game.
17 runs needed off the next 11 balls.
So there's only 11 pitches left.
They need 17 runs off of those,
and this is the very next ball after the great catch,
and it is high, and it is not far, and it is caught.
So that batter came up.
Jack Edwards.
He faced 16.
He scored one ball, and he scored zero runs.
He's gone.
See ya.
Now a new batsman comes up,
and this is the first ball he faces,
and he puts it in play, and they want to run,
because the other dude, he really wants to be up.
He's the better hitter.
He's kind of in the good zone right now.
He's like, I want to get up.
So he wanted to run there.
He wants to run here, too,
but the bowler makes a one-handed stop, says, nope.
See you later.
So now they need 15 runs off the next seven balls.
It's getting tougher,
and he really wants to get up,
but that ball's put in the air, and oh, it's not caught.
Okay, they're going to try and run.
They're going to try and run for two.
Outfielder grabs it.
Perfect throw right to his teammate,
who grabs the wicket, gets that runner out.
You're done.
Extra celebration just for the hell of it.
Fired up.
Fuck!
Yeah!
So Kerr is gone.
He faced four balls, scored four runs.
The next batsman to come up is this dude with the mustache,
and number 21 is still missing.
He's still not up, and he really wants to bat.
21.
Oh, he just nixed that.
He leaves his crease for some reason,
and they bowl him out.
Another wicket.
See you, Ben.
What were you doing?
Huh?
I mean, he just kind of walks.
He's like, 21, you want up?
Enrique, you want up?
Oh, shit.
That was probably not smart.
So in comes another batsman, another batsman,
and this dude, Enrique, is like, this sucks.
Hey, why don't you get me up?
I'd like to win the game for everybody.
Bowled.
Put in play.
He runs for one.
Says, stay there.
Stay there.
I'd like to hit.
First ball, it's a Yorker.
He's like, all right, let's go for two.
Push it.
I want to get up again.
I'm running back.
I'm running back.
And oh, the throw is off line, but almost a great play
by the keeper again to get the wickets.
Ultimately doesn't, but everything was close in this game,
and wickets fell fast at the end.
And now they need nine runs off the next three balls.
And Enrique's like, I should just hit a six.
Does, does.
They go shorter length than the Yorker,
and he just says, see you later.
I'm going to pull that one into the seats.
And now it's three runs off the next two balls.
And they're saying, hey, man, pitch him offside.
He wants to pull it.
Make him go the other way.
Make him go on the offside.
And he's locked in.
Kind of makes that face when he gets locked in.
They go away.
He's locked on the ground.
They're going to run four.
They're digging for two.
Digging for two.
Oh, my goodness.
They got it.
All of his teammates wanted him to throw to the other wicket
because the dude stumbled.
He did not see their arms.
That one, that one, that one.
He does not see them.
They had that guy.
Oh, boy.
Oh, it would have been awesome, but they didn't get it.
I mean, kind of close, but he's in pretty smoothly there.
So now it comes down to the last ball.
They need one run off one remaining ball to win and be the 2C.
And they're talking about, hey, what do you want to do?
We got to bring the infield in.
We got to bring everyone in the circle.
We got to stop all the singles.
You got to throw this away.
Try and get the same shot.
Don't let them pull it with power.
You can see the infield coming in on his offside.
All right.
They got some outfielders over there, I think.
And let's see what happens.
This is everything you want in a cricket match.
One run of one ball.
And let's get into our creepy smile.
And we're there and we're focused.
And we are going to win the match.
Flips it over their heads.
It goes to the boundary for four.
They only needed one.
And the Strikers win at advance and get the 2C in what was a thrilling ending
where the Scorchers defense just kind of took over like crazy.
But in the end, Enrique, he finally got up and he does the job.
Gets the job done.
That was pretty cool.
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