Jofra Archer, the 22-year-old Sussex pacer, bowled a nerveless final over, giving away just five runs to secure Hobart Hurricanes a thrilling seven-run win over Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League in Hobart. Strikers ended up with 176, while chasing down 184.
Jonathan Wells (28) and Jake Lehmann (16) had shared a quickfire stand of 29 off 16 balls to raise hopes of a come-from-behind win for Strikers. Wells smacked two sixes while Lehmann crunched one six and one boundary. The duo piloted the visiting side to within 13 runs of pulling off a win.
It was Archer, who broke the threatening stand by prising Lehmann out LBW with a quick delivery. Wells was run out the very next ball as they slid further to 171 for 6. Archer then bowled toe-crushers and the short ball to ensure a well-earned win.
Archer also played a pivotal role to give Hurricanes the edge in the early overs. In his first over, he dismissed Alex Carey (2), with Clive Rose dislodging Jake Weatherald (7) as Strikers were reduced to 10 for 2. Travis Head (44) and Colin Ingram (66) stitched a partnership of 102 for the third wicket to keep Strikers in the hunt.
However, with the required run-rate climbing over 10 runs per over, Head perished to Archer. Tymal Mills then removed Ingram in the 17th over as Strikers lost their fourth wicket. Despite Lehmann and Wells playing a string of shots in the slog overs, the duo couldn't take Strikers home.
For Hurricanes, D'Arcy Short laid the foundation for a sizeable total with a 58-ball 96. He cracked nine fours and four sixes in his enterprising innings. Alex Doolan (29) and Matthew Wade (20) also made useful contributions. Billy Stanlake and Rashid Khan took two wickets each for the Strikers franchise. Hurricanes have two wins out of four matches and are placed sixth on the points table, while Strikers slot in at second position with three victories.
Brief scores: Hobart Hurricanes 183/5 in 20 overs (D'Arcy Short 96; Rashid Khan 2-18) beat Adelaide Strikers 176/6 in 20 overs (Colin Ingram 66, Travis Head 44; Jofra Archer 3-15) by 7 runs.
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