Bevan-led Blues end the seven year itch

If it's a characteristic of great players to unfurl great deeds at great times, then Michael Bevan gave a pretty powerful demonstration today of where he stands in the contemporary one-day arena. Arguably the world's finest limited-overs player, he produced a display more than worthy of the tag as he guided New South Wales to an upset six wicket victory over Western Australia with ten deliveries to spare in the 2000-01 Mercantile Mutual Cup Final here in Perth.

Having booked its ticket to this match on the back of snatching several close victories from the jaws of defeat, Western Australia might have been expected to do it again in a tight finish at the WACA Ground. But, at the time when it really mattered most, it was the Blues who held their nerve the best. Piloted to the line brilliantly by a first-ever domestic one-day century from the mercurial Bevan (135*), they deservedly won their state a sixth domestic one-day title and a first for seven years in the process.

On a day laced with tension, controversy and emotion, Bevan fashioned the defining innings - a wonderfully composed mixture of outright aggression, solid defence and skilled placement of the ball - to prove again that he has few peers in the one-day arena. Responding to the Warriors' tally of 7/272 on a relatively benign pitch, his team was at 1/14 and in potential peril when he walked to the crease in mid-afternoon. But by the time, three hours later, that he struck the winning boundary, jubilantly raised his fists skyward, and then strode purposefully from the arena, the home side's dreams of back-to-back titles - and of creating the perfect send-off for retiring champion, Tom Moody - had thoroughly evaporated.

"It was really an opportunity for me to go out there and take a bit of a chance and take the bowlers on," said Bevan after his innings.

"I was really happy with the way I hit it and to get those runs in a Final is always nice."

"I (generally) just try and focus on what I have to do. I didn't feel too much pressure today. I just wanted to go out there and try my best and see what happened really," he added in an apparent masterpiece of understatement.

"There was a period there where (the required run rate) went up to about eight an over. And it was a case of having to take a little bit of a chance. But the wicket's so nice and the outfield's so fast (at the WACA) that you don't really have to take that much of a chance here, which helps you as a batsman when you're chasing a total."

In honesty, the Western Australian bowling and fielding was not at its sharpest. The match might have ended in a much different result, in fact, if the Warriors' pace attack had not continually overpitched or strayed on to the line of the left hander's pads. The outcome might also have diverged from its ultimate course if Brendon Julian, at mid on, had not grassed a regulation catch as Bevan (with his score on just 59) mistimed a drive at the medium pace of Moody (0/29 from five overs).

But to overplay that assessment would also, unfairly, take much away from Bevan. The way in which he assumed the advantage and punished his opponents for their mistakes provided an instructive lesson about his prowess. Fourteen fours and a powerful on driven six flowed from his bat in a glorious exhibition of shotmaking. Moody was aggressive in his intent against the left hander early, placing as many as four fieldsmen in a tight catching cordon behind point and stationing only one of his players forward of the bat on the leg side. But the policy failed to draw any genuine mistakes and the vital wicket was not forthcoming. Indeed, it never came.

In short, the international star was in his element, capitalising savagely on anything loose and continuing to work even frugal deliveries away for singles. With youngster Michael Clarke (57), who overcame consistent cramping in his right leg to craft a skilled innings of his own at the other end, Bevan added an invaluable 126 runs for the second wicket. Their liaison began to take the match out of the Warriors' hands; then, two others which followed decisively affirmed the trend.

After two strikes from Duncan Spencer (2/57 from seven overs) in the one over threatened to undo all the good work, another sixty-one runs then flowed in Bevan's alliance with Mark Higgs (29). All Graeme Rummans (30*) had to do by this stage was turn the strike over to his partner - a feat he performed with aplomb - and another sixty-nine were duly added in the unbroken fifth wicket stand that officially ended the contest.

"I'm very satisfied; it was a great win. It was always going to be a tough chase, chasing 270 in a Final. But full credit to Michael Bevan; it was a superb innings," enthused a delighted New South Wales captain, Shane Lee, shortly after the win.

"It's always nice to win in Perth. We always have a tough game against the Western Australians, both here and in Sydney. So I think it's extra special to win (the one-day title) here at the WACA."

"We've got a very well balanced side. We were confident though we knew we had to play well. I always felt that, if one player got a big score, we were a good chance of getting the runs. There's a lot of talent there."

Earlier, it had been Mike Hussey (84*), Moody (78) and Murray Goodwin (38) who had helped to lift Western Australia into its very competitive position.

In the warm conditions, the opening fifty overs actually provided a strange, see-sawing start to the match. The visitors threatened to take control initially with two early strikes; Moody and Goodwin's 103-run stand for the third wicket pushed the advantage back to Western Australia; a brace of quick wickets fell upon their separation; and then Hussey profited from a Rummans dropped catch at 25 to smash the attack into submission over the closing stages.

Just to add to the action-filled picture, there were moments of high drama and controversy too. The most stark of these came in the twenty-first over when Shawn Bradstreet slid and attempted to save a Moody boundary on the deep mid wicket rope. Subsequent replays showed that the attempt was unsuccessful. But this was not before a brilliant Bradstreet throw found the stumps at the non-striker's end with Moody still short of his ground. This prompted an amazing few minutes as Umpire Darrell Hair first gave Moody out before appearing to have his decision challenged by a furious Western Australian captain and then ultimately reversing it with the help of third umpire, Randolph Woolridge.

Both captains later conceded that they were puzzled by the incident, agreeing that it was unusual. Bradstreet also endured a hostile reception from the crowd of 9310 every time he ventured anywhere near the ball for the remainder of the match.

But, by the end of the day, there wasn't too much room for dispute. The Final produced clear winners, both collectively and individually. Australia's so-called premier state, and the nation's premier one-day batsman, were simply too good.