Hodge and Hussey star as Victoria win thriller
A decisive spell of tight, aggressive pace from Victoria's Mick Lewis prevented South Australia from chasing down a record total in the thrilling day-night ING Cup cricket match at Adelaide Oval
Wisden Cricinfo staff
30-Jan-2004
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Brad Hodge celebrates his fine hundred at the Adelaide Oval © Getty Images |
Victoria 7 for 293 (Hodge 114, David Hussey 113) beat South Australia 8 for 287 (Ferguson 58) by six suns
Scorecard
Scorecard
A decisive spell of tight, aggressive pace from Victoria's Mick Lewis prevented South Australia from overtaking a record total in the thrilling day-night ING Cup cricket match at Adelaide Oval. Chasing Victoria's 7 for 293, SA made 8 for 287 in reply, giving the Bushrangers a six-run win. This was Victoria's first match after the death of David Hookes and the win places them second on the cup table.
In a game dominated by batsmen, Lewis's bowling figures of 2 for 35 from 10 overs was the outstanding effort. The other heroes for Victoria were Brad Hodge and David Hussey, who put on a record third-wicket stand of 226 -the highest partnership for any wicket by a Victorian pair. Hodge's 114 was his third century in seven innings for the season and took his season average to 98.2. Hussey scored 113, his first limited overs century, and earned the Man of the Match award.
Victoria's total was its highest ever in the limited overs competition, but SA looked on track to chase it down when they were 2 for 124 and scoring at almost seven per over with Callum Ferguson (58) and Mark Higgs (16) leading the charge.
Ferguson hit Allan Wise for a six over long-on in the 15th over which hit an ING sign to earn him $50,000, and also brought up the home side's 100. But Lewis, introduced to the attack for the first time in the 20th over, accounted for Ferguson and Higgs in his first four balls to turn the match, as South Australia slumped to 4 for 125.
Darren Lehmann (39), the SA captain, and Mick Miller (44), the allrounder, put on 72 for the fifth wicket, but then Lehmann was run out by Hussey in the 36th over. Hodge then pulled off a brilliant diving save at midwicket to run out Miller in the 42nd over, leaving SA at 6 for 233.
Greg Blewett, demoted to No. 7 because he was suffering from a back injury, fired off 26 runs from 31 balls late in the innings. But Jonathan Moss bowled Blewett and Mark Cleary in the space of four balls to make it 8 for 265. SA needed 12 runs off the last over to achieve what would have been their highest successful run-chase, but Lewis was able to restrict them to just five.