This Sixers side has faced pressure from an early point in the season, as well as some questioning of their ability to speed up their pace at the top of the order and to show some fight in the middle overs. However, this pressure was eased greatly by this side’s performance of 198-5, which was their highest score of the year so far, and was primarily built on Josh Philippe’s 96 and Babar Azam’s 58, who both took their time to build the foundations of the innings for the Sixers. Historically, the Sixers have had success as a batting unit when they have shown patience, but also a late pace, in their innings. This performance perfectly mirrored that formula, and the Thunder were unable to get out of the shadows of this performance all game long.
When Caution Bought Time, Not Trouble
Babar Azam’s power play of seven from eleven balls appeared ordinary at first glance; however, it is important to look at this in context. Babar was able to act as a counterweight to the initial aggressive batting of Daniel Hughes and therefore did not become an anchor that would have caused him to lose momentum when Hughes fell to Reece Topley with a slower ball. Babar was able to be adaptive and make an adjustment after Hughes’ fall to slow down the tempo of the game. His ability to adjust speed while maintaining his own form and structure has been his least recognized T20I skill, particularly on Australian pitches that are characterized by long, hard lengths, which require a batsman to show caution at the beginning of their innings.
Philippe’s Intent Rewrote the Middle Overs
The six Josh Philippe hit in his first six balls off Shadab Khan signified an assertion of authority over Thunder’s primary control bowler. Philippe reached 50 faster than Babar; finished with 96 (and therefore demonstrated that he can convert a start into a match-changing contribution); and in doing so, he, along with Babar, had formed a partnership of 140 runs, which did more than create a total for Strikers; it destroyed Thunder’s bowling plan.
A Finish That Still Leaves Questions
Thunder’s pursuit never rebounded from its early disruption. The opening mayhem of Todd Murphy being forced to concede early boundaries was all but a memory when Jack Edwards had inserted himself into the story with his two-wicket burst in the opening over (including David Warner), which left Thunder at 17-3 and turned pressure into panic. Statistically, teams pursuing totals of 190+ have lost almost 70% of their games after losing three wickets within the powerplay; Thunder were no exception.
Early Wickets, Immediate Panic
Thunder’s pursuit never rebounded from its early disruption. The opening mayhem of Todd Murphy being forced to concede early boundaries was all but a memory when Jack Edwards had inserted himself into the story with his two-wicket burst in the opening over (including David Warner), which left Thunder at 17-3 and turned pressure into panic. Statistically, teams pursuing totals of 190+ have lost almost 70% of their games after losing three wickets within the powerplay; Thunder were no exception.
The tournament has just started, but it’s already evident in terms of time management. The Sydney Sixers have an excellent sense of timing when choosing to back-pedal or be aggressive as needed. However, the Sydney Thunder are yet to understand that Twenty20 games are generally won by increments rather than one big hit. Therefore, until they learn this lesson, the Sydney Smash will likely appear more as a mismatch than a rivalry.
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