Harvey seals the Cup for Western Australia

Western Australia 6 for 248 (Harvey 53*) beat Queensland 244 (Harvey 4-28) by four wickets
Scorecard

Kade Harvey led a one-man assault on Queensland, to give Western Australia a thrilling four-wicket win in the final of the ING Cup. Harvey launched his display with 4 for 28 with the ball as Queensland batted first and reached 244, and then turned the game on its head with a blazing 53 not out off 42 balls from No. 7.

WA had been almost down and almost at 6 for 173, but Harvey teamed up with Darren Wates (29 off 27 balls) to add an unbeaten 75 for the seventh wicket to guide them to victory with two balls to spare. They had needed to score 45 from the last four overs, and 8 from the last six balls alone, but Wates sealed the Cup with a six and then a four off the part-time bowling off Clinton Perren, who was called into the attack after four Queensland bowlers sustained injuries in the course of the innings.

It was an excruciating loss for Queensland, who had seemed all set to end a three-year curse and become the first home team to win a domestic one-day final since 2000. "They came back from the dead," admitted their captain Jimmy Maher. "We thought we were home."

Queensland's optimism had been based on a fine mid-innings display, after WA had raced to 1 for 100 in 22 overs. Nathan Hauritz (2 for 55) was the catalyst, obtaining great turn and using subtle variation to bamboozle the batsmen. The opener Scott Meuleman smacked an impressive 71 from 85 balls, but the middle order failed to build on his good work as WA lost 5 for 62 and the run-rate required escalated. But the 47th over, which featured 13 runs including a dropped outfield catch by Ashley Noffke that went for six, was the turning point.

Harvey and Wates took control against a Queensland attack that was visibly limping by the end. Maher was nursing an injured hamstring throughout, Andy Bichel and James Hopes suffered cramp and Craig Philipson was replaced with an upper leg injury after a long chase to the boundary. They paid the price by conceding some late-innings misfields, with slower fielders made to cover extra ground.

Earlier, Harvey's four wickets in Queensland's innings came at crucial moments. Stuart Law (50 off 40) and Maher (46 off 43) were the first two victims, after racing to 100 in the first 12 overs. Meanwhile, the rookie wicketkeeper Chris Hartley enjoyed a one-day debut to remember by dismissing Meuleman with a vital stumping, standing up to the medium pace of Hopes.