Hits ‘The Finisher’ lives up to nickname That’s why they call him The Finisher. James Faulkner broke the Perth Scorchers’ hearts with a brilliant late cameo we’ve come to expect from him over the years. The Hobart Hurricanes all-rounder started the night in emphatic fashion, taking three wickets in his first seven balls to have the Scorcher reeling at 3-7. But it was his late batting heroics that got the ‘Canes over the line with three balls to spare. Needing 16 to win from the final over, bowled by experienced death bowler Andrew Tye, Faulker only needed three deliveries to get the job done. The hard-hitting right-hander belted two sixes and a four to finish unbeaten on 28 from 20 deliveries. Veteran George Bailey deserves a mention for his 39-ball 69, earning man-of-the-match honours, setting the stage for Faulkner’s heroics. White-hot Sam’s stunning counter attack The Scorchers were 3-7 when Hilton Cartwright joined Sam Whiteman at the crease, just 13 balls into the match. But that didn’t stop Scorchers gloveman Whiteman producing a stunning display of hitting to turn the game on its head. Whiteman would’ve been excused for taking it slow with wickets tumbling around him. But he did the exact opposite, belting a career-best 68 from 44 balls including four sixes and five boundaries. Whiteman was particularly destructive on the leg-side, clearing the rope with ease square of the wicket. He combined with Cartwright (29 from 29) for a match-turning 77-run fourth-wicket stand. The lower-order hitting of Nathan Coulter-Nile (31 not out off 15) Andrew Tye (25 off 12) then got the Scorchers to a competitive total of 9-177. Coulter-Nile took 20 runs from the final over alone, including three massive sixes off Faulkner. Moody’s brilliant over After a wayward and nervous start to his Big Bash career, Hobart debutant David Moody proved his worth in the 15th over. With the innings starting to slip away from the Hurricanes, Moody affected a brilliant direct hit run out to dismiss second-gamer Aaron Hardie. Moody showed great athleticism for a player of his height, grabbing the ball and turning in a swift motion before hitting the stumps at the non-strikers end. He then got rid of Will Bosisto and danger man Whiteman in consecutive deliveries to finish his over, completing a collapse of 3-5. What a (crowd) catch! The best catch of the night belonged to a bloke in the stands. Not only did the punter catch a huge straight six from Hobart Hurricanes veteran George Bailey off leg-spinner Usman Qadir’s bowling with one hand, he also managed to keep his beer in-tact. The man in orange plucked the fast-travelling ball with his right arm, all while still holding his frothy in the other. He was pretty happy with his efforts, throwing the ball back before celebrating with a ‘dab’. Misses Mis-firing Archer’s early exit Joffra Archer couldn’t have had a worse night with the ball. The usually reliable paceman went for 19 runs from his 10-ball spell, including three no-balls, before getting banished from the attack for bowling a second ball over waste height. It threw Matt Wade’s bowling plans into disarray, with the Hurricanes skipper having to rely heavily on his part-time options. Archer had nine wickets in seven matches leading into the Optus Stadium clash, but looked off from the get-go. Klinger’s bad luck continues Michael Klinger can’t catch a break. Five days after getting out on the seventh legal delivery of an over, the veteran Perth Scorchers opener was on the wrong end of another umpiring howler. The 38-year-old was given his marching orders in the opening over of the match, despite the ball not only pitching outside leg stump, but also missing the stumps altogether. Klinger has struggled to replicate his form of previous tournaments, scoring just 115 runs at 12.8. His best score of BBL08 so far is 29 against the Melbourne Stars last week.<doc-sep>Perth Scorchers’ season is on life support after they were unable to defend 177 runs tonight and lost to the Hobart Hurricanes by four wickets at Optus Stadium. Perth paid the price for losing wickets in clumps after being sent in to bat and being unable to contain George Bailey and James Faulkner. Faulkner scored 16 runs from the first three balls of the last over to win the game. Bailey set the Hurricanes up with 69 from 39 balls. Perth now have a 3-6 record and a series of injury concerns. Sam Whiteman injured his right quad while batting last night and couldn’t field, while David Willey missed the game with a shoulder injury. Ashton Agar will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a fractured dislocation to his right index finger at training. “Ash sustained an intra-articular fracture that will require surgical repair. We expect that Ash will undergo surgery in the coming days, and as a result will be unavailable for the remainder of the BBL,” Scorchers’ Sports Science Sports Medicine Manager Nick Jones said. Perth will be bolstered by the return of Shaun Marsh, Mitch Marsh, Jhye Richardson and Jason Behrendorff for the remainder of the tournament, giving them a huge boost in both their batting and bowling stocks. But they have little margin for error with five games remaining despite three being at home. The Scorchers’ started terribly. James Faulkner dismissed Cameron Bancroft and Michael Klinger for ducks, then removed dangerman Ashton Turner for only two to leave Perth 3-7 after 13 balls. Sam Whiteman and Hilton Cartwright then changed the momentum of the game with a brilliant hitting display to combine for a 77-run partnership. Hurricanes’ paceman Joffra Archer couldn’t handle that pressure. He conceded 15 runs in his first over, including one wide and two no-balls. The umpires removed him from the attack midway through his second over after bowling his second full-toss over waist height. Whiteman scored 68 runs from 44 balls including five fours and four sixes. But he departed in a disastrous 15th over where Perth lost three wickets. A blistering 31 from Nathan Coulter-Nile and 25 from Andrew Tye gave them a dynamic finish to their 20 overs. Coulter-Nile struck three sixes in the final over to give them a strong total. The Scorchers received the ideal start when they dismissed D’Arcy Short for 13 and Matthew Wade for eight. Caleb Jewell threatened to take the game away from them with a powerful 32 from 20 balls but he was caught in the deep trying to push the pace. The game was evenly poised when Hobart needed 94 runs from the last 10 overs with seven wickets in hand and Bailey showed his experience to with six fours and three sixes to give his team a chance. Johan Botha and James Faulkner sthen cored the 21 runs needed from the last two overs to steer Hobart to victory. “I felt like I owed the boys after my last over with the ball,” Faulkner said.<doc-sep>The Hurricanes extended their lead at the top of the Big Bash standings after winning a thriller over the Scorchers at Perth Stadium. Set 178 for victory, the Hurricanes won with three balls to spare as former Australian short-form specialist James Faulkner saw the Hobart-based side home in thrilling circumstances. Their six-wicket win saw the Hurricanes move four points clear on the standings on 14 points, which snapped the Scorchers’ two match winning streak. Every Test, ODI, T20I, and BBL match live. SIGN UP NOW! REMEMBER ME? It’s been 15 months since Faulkner last played one day cricket for Australia. But the 28-year-old left-armer reminded Australian selectors of his pedigree after taking 3-36 against the Scorchers, including all three scalps inside his first seven deliveries. Had it not been for three lusty blows from Nathan Coulter-Nile in the final over of the innings, those figures would have been all the more impressive. Ironically, they were the same figures that saw him claim man of the match honours in the World Cup final against New Zealand at the MCG. Then, as he’s done so many times before, he lived up to his reputation as one of the best finishers in the game by guiding the Hurricanes home with the bat. After starting slowly, Faulkner hit 16 off the first three deliveries of the final over to see the visitors home. With the World Cup nearing once again, a strong finish to the season could see him come back into the selection frame, particularly given his matchwinning performances on the international arena with both bat and ball previously. THAT’S ME DONE He’s one of the coolest customers in the business, but even Jofra Archer would have felt embarrassed by his Friday night’s work. After James Faulkner tore through the Scorchers’ top-order, Matthew Wade tossed the ball to his big West Indian quick. Ten official balls later, Archer was handed his cap by the umpire after his second beamer saw him forced out of the attack. Adding to the frustration, neither no-ball full toss ball was particularly dangerous particular his second beamer which was a slower ball well wide of the batsman. Former Australian left-arm quick Mitchell Johnson said the delivery which saw him removed from the attack wasn’t dangerous, but cost the Hurricanes dearly. “I don’t know if it has to be a dangerous delivery, but there were two balls over the hip. He was warned on his first one and the second one came,” Johnson told Fox Cricket. “I think it just slipped out a little bit, and it wasn’t a dangerous delivery. But he knew straight away, he was off and that’s disappointing for him. He would have felt disappointed in himself, he’d let the team down, it just wasn’t his night and the Hurricanes they heavily rely on him.” MOMENT OF THE MATCH Usually the moment of the match goes to a player’s feats, but on this occasion it was one punter that stole the show. 9.3 overs into the Hurricanes’ run chase, George Bailey spanked Usman Qadir down the ground with one flat, crisp strike into the stands. Rising from his chair, one punter coolly stretched backwards, a half drunk beer in his left-hand and with his right caught the ball effortlessly. Not a drop of beer was lost either. Just to top it off, the middle-aged man showed he’s not a one-trick pony by producing a dab.<doc-sep>
James Faulkner hit 16 off the final over to see the Hurricanes home against the Perth Scorchers. James Faulkner smashed 16 off the final over to see the Hobart Hurricanes home in the match of the Big Bash season. Set 178 for victory by the Perth Scorchers after being 3-7 after 13 balls, the Hurricanes won by six wickets thanks to a half century from man of the match George Bailey (69 off 39) and some late hitting from Faulkner (28 off 20). In a seesawing contest, the Scorchers looked set to record their third straight victory and roar back into finals contention after removing the Hurricanes’ openers cheaply. Both Matthew Wade (eight) and D’Arcy Short (13) skied balls to be dismissed by Nathan Coulter-Nile and AJ Tye respectively. First-drop Caleb Jewell (32) and Ben McDermott (16) made starts, but neither went on to post a score of any substance. It was left for Bailey to dig the Hurricanes out of their hole and together with Faulkner, the experienced international duo put on 57 for the sixth wicket. Bailey eventually fell attempting an ambitious paddle pull shot but only managed a fine-edge through to Cameron Bancroft off Tye. But Bailey’s removal spurred Faulkner into action, as the bowling all-rounder belted 16 off the first three balls of the final over to see the Hurricanes home in thrilling circumstances and see them extend their lead at the top of the Big Bash standings on 14 points. Every Test, ODI, T20I, and BBL match live. SIGN UP NOW! Earlier, at 3-7 the Perth Scorchers looked dead. But a brilliant half-century from Sam Whiteman and some late hitting from Tye and Coulter-Nile saw the home side make 9-177. After being sent in to bat, Faulkner picked up both openers Bancroft and Michael Klinger for ducks. Faulkner could hardly believe his luck when he bowled in-form Scorchers captain Ashton Turner for two with his first ball of his second over to leave the home side in disarray at 3-7. But a brilliant 77-run partnership between Whiteman (68 off 44) and Hilton Cartwright (29 off 29) got the home side back on track. They were helped by the removal of Hurricanes quick Jofra Archer, who was forced out of the attack after bowling two illegal balls over the waist of the batsmen just 1.4 overs into his spell. Cartwright was eventually stumped by Wade off Short. Whiteman and Aaron Hardie put on 28 for the fifth-wicket, before the latter was run-out by David Moody for nine. His exit saw the Scorchers lose 3-5, as Moody removed Whiteman and Will Bosisto with consecutive deliveries. The game turned on its head once again, however, as Tye (25 off 12) and Coulter-Nile (31 off 15) finished with a bang. Riley Meredith was the pick of the bowlers for the Hurricanes taking 2-19 off four overs, while Faulkner finished with 3-36 after being hit for three sixes in his final over. The win saw the Scorchers extend their lead at the top of the standings to four points, while the Scorchers at slumped towards the bottom on six points.