Canterbury quick Jamieson takes third-best return in T20s

Canterbury seamer Kyle Jamieson took 6 for 7 in the side's Super Smash T20 match against Auckland to claim the joint third-best innings haul by a bowler in all T20s. Jamieson equaled Lasith Malinga's figures of 6 for 7 in the BBL in 2012 and had it not been for the two wides Jamieson bowled, he would have equaled Arul Suppiah's record figures of 6 for 5. Jamieson's haul helped set up Canterbury's five-wicket win

Jamieson's figures are the best by a New Zealand bowler in T20s. The previous best figures by a New Zealand bowler in T20s were by Ish Sodhi,who claimed 6 for 11 in a Big Bash League match in 2017.

Coming into the attack early on for Cantebury, after the side had elected to field, Jamieson took a wicket in his first over, and followed it up with a double-wicket over, which included the scalps of James Vince and Mark Chapman. The run-out of Glenn Phillips between those two wickets had left Auckland reeling at 25 for 4.

They had hobbled to 92 for 6 by the time Jamieson returned in the 18th over and cut through Auckland's tail with three wickets. It took a couple of sixes from Will Somerville to lift the batting side past 100, and they were eventually dismissed for 110 in the 19th over.

Jamieson said he had stuck to his usual match preparations, and while he wasn't into statistics, this was a special landmark.

"Don't think I did anything different," he said after the match. "The processes we put in place in the days leading up to the games and the days we play. So it was just a matter of doing that and it seemed to work out today.

"I am not a big stats man but that's obviously a pretty cool thing to look back on the days and weeks that come so."

In their chase, Canterbury were off to a poor start too, losing two top-order wickets to Mitchell McClenaghan in the second over. However, their captain Cole McConchie, who had earlier held on to a screamer to dismiss Robbie O'Donnell, steered their innings with an unbeaten 47 off 42 balls. McConchie hit the winnings runs to give Canterbury their opening victory of the tournament in their second match.