A.B. AND PATTO TOO HOT
A.B. de Villiers has eased Brisbane to a comfortable win in his Big Bash League debut after James Pattinson’s maiden five-wicket haul skittled Adelaide.
The South African recruit hit a serene 40 off 32 balls yesterday as the Heat chased down the Strikers’ 110 with seven wickets and 28 balls to spare.
Entering at 2-11, his innings opened with a crisp cover drive to the boundary off spinner Rashid Khan and featured strokes to all corners to the delight of the 19,681-strong crowd at the Gabba.
His innings ended when he picked out the deep midon fielder, but by then the win was in the bag.
De Villiers’s classy knock was everything Heat fans had been hoping for.
With the help of Matthew Renshaw (52 not out off 45), the innings ensured a Chris Lynn golden duck did not lead to another failed chase.
The victory improved the Heat (5-4) to equal third with five games to play, while the Strikers are now 4-4-1 and on the brink of the top five.
Earlier, Pattinson set up the victory with his BBL-best 5-33, with the Australian quick at one stage boasting figures of 4-18 off 14 balls.
His first four wickets came courtesy of catches from keeper Jimmy Peirson, but only one was a regulation edge.
Travis Head squirted an edge off his hip that lobbed towards short-fine leg, while Philip Salt and Harry Nielsen were caught down the legside.
De Villiers then pouched a sharp diving catch at short cover to claim the in-form Jonathan Wells and hand Pattinson his fifth.
The Strikers were bowled out in the penultimate over.
The haul bettered Pattinson’s 4-23 while playing for the Melbourne Renegades, and was only the 13th fivewicket haul in BBL history.
His day out came after a night to forget in his first BBL appearance of the season, having been slammed for 52 runs in his four overs.