Smith and Davies star to take Sydney Sixers into BBL final

Steven Smith was again to fore, and Joel Davies put in a fine all-round display, as Sydney Sixers booked their place in the BBL final with crushing 57-run victory over Hobart Hurricanes at the SCG.

Smith top-scored with 65 off 43 balls with the rest of Sixers' top order playing a series of cameos as they posted 198 for 8 against a Hurricanes attack that was without captain Nathan Ellis and Chris Jordan, the latter who played as a batter only.

When Smith was flying and Sixers were 120 for 2 after 12 overs something well in excess of 200 was on the cards but a double-wicket over from Rishad Hossain brought things back somewhat although Davies 27 off 12 balls Lachlan Shaw's 21 off 13 kept the momentum going.

Hurricanes lost two wickets in the powerplay, including Mitchell Owen, and Beau Webster laboured to 24 off 27 balls as the asking rate climbed which then resulted in a flurry of wickets that decided the contest.

Sixers will play Perth Scorchers in the final at Optus Stadium on the Sunday, the sixth time the two teams have met to decide the title.

Owen took consecutive boundaries off Mitchell Starc but then slotted the next ball straight up in the air to end a season where he has struggled to live up to the success of last summer with 166 runs in 11 innings.

Starc should have had a second wicket in is next over when Smith dropped a regulation chance at slip offered by Webster. During the over, Starc was clocked at 149kph in another display of his stamina after the Ashes. Webster's only boundary of a difficult innings was a six off Jack Edwards, meaning he made 18 off his other 25 balls before falling to Ben Dwarshuis.

The young left hander had contributed a punchy 27 when Hurricanes threatened to come back into the game and then put on another display of his rapidly developing left-arm spin. He had Nikhil Chaudhary brilliantly held by Edwards at wide long-off then next ball held a spectacular return catch, diving full length to his left, to remove Matthew Wade. Davies would cap his evening with another superb catch, this time in the deep to remove stand-in captain Ben McDermott.

Smith collected his first boundary when he sent Riley Meredith over mid-off in the second over followed by a deft late cut. Smith kept moving briskly, lofting his only six when he pulled Will Prestwidge over deep square, and brought up his fifty from 31 balls.

It added more fuel to the debate about whether Australia should make a late change to their T20 World Cup squad to parachute Smith in. They can still freely make changes until January 31, but with Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head locked in at the top - and the strong overall form of the team - it seems unlikely. However, if Tim David doesn't recover from his hamstring injury or there is another injury, Smith would be a compelling option.

Smith had more than enough time to make his second century of the season but facing Rishad at the start of the second power surge over he missed a reverse switch and was bowled. Rishad, who has been a standout performer for Hurricanes, then saw Davies take him for a four and six off his next two deliveries. But he claimed Moises Henriques with the last ball of the over, brilliantly caught by Jordan at mid-on.

Overall, spin was effective for Hurricanes. Alongside Rishad's 2 for 33, Chaudhary produced a crafty four overs that cost just 18. He did not concede a boundary, going for 16 singles and a single two. Webster, meanwhile, showed his versatility by switching between offspin and medium pace when he bowled at the left-right pair of Davies and Lachlan Shaw.

Davies and Shaw, part of a youthful middle order, made 48 off 25 balls between them having come unstuck against Scorchers in the Qualifier. During their partnership there was a heated exchange between Webster and Wade over a field setting. Hurricanes were also denied the wicket of Edwards on 2 when he edged Rishad, but they had no reviews left having burnt theirs in the opening over of the match. It all summed the latter stages of a title defence that had not gone to plan since they lost a game they had under control against Brisbane Heat.