Smith guides NSW to victory

New South Wales strolled to their second victory in the Ryobi One Day Cup, beating Western Australia by five wickets. The star was their captain Steven Smith, who scored his second fifty in three games to help NSW reach their 234-run target 48.5 overs.

Western Australia opted to bat and had a solid start but they lost wickets in clusters to be restricted to 8 for 233. Cameron Bancroft and Marcus Harris added 46 runs in their opening stand, and Marcus North and John Rogers added 51 but the side didn't have any other substantial stands. Gurinder Sandhu was the most successful NSW bowler, picking 3 for 66, and Josh Hazlewood returned tidy figures of 1 for 25 off 10 overs.

In reply Smith, leading NSW for the second time in the tournament, anchored the side's chase, scoring 73 off 108 balls at No. 3. He came in to bat in the 12th over and stayed till the end, adding useful partnerships with Nic Maddinson and Sean Abbott. Maddinson, who joined the team shortly after arriving from the T20 international in India, struck a 38-ball 32 and added 53 runs with Smith, while Abbott was involved in an unbeaten 85 run-stand that secured the win for NSW.