Thunder win low-scoring thriller, will face Heat in Eliminator
Sydney Thunder secured a playoff berth with the win, while Melbourne Stars finished bottom
Sydney Thunder secured a playoff berth with the win, while Melbourne Stars finished bottom
Commentator: @PeterDellaPenna
10.27 pm The Thunder dragged out the drama as long as possible making what should have been a straightforward chase mighty difficult, but the Stars show why they claimed the wooden spoon in this year's BBL with some sloppy fielding after a limp batting effort. So the Thunder season will continue for at least one more match after they go into the playoffs in the fourth seed. They will host the fifth seeded Brisbane Heat in an elimination match to see who will move on.
Thunder captain Chris Green is Player of the Match: "Sitting on the bench while we were batting... we scraped in by the barest of margins. The batting, we need to rectify. It wasn't good enough. Our strength all tournament has been scrapping and defending low totals and bowling teams out for low totals. We needed some partnerships from the top four to stand up. Our batting innings, we weren't busy enough and there were a lot of dot balls, but the rotation of strike picked up at the end. It's an exciting opportunity to host a knockout. I can't wait to get back to the Showground with Thunder Nation. It's a side that we've beat twice already but we know they've been playing good cricket at the back end and we need to play well to beat them."
So that concludes our live coverage for the league phase of BBL 2022-23. Everyone can take a breather after today's drama because tomorrow is a rest day before the playoffs begin on Friday. Join us then, but that's it for today. On behalf of my commentary partner Andrew Miller, take care!
Mandatory concussion check in progress by the Thunder physio.
Sydney Thunder secured a playoff berth with the win, while Melbourne Stars finished bottom