Heat go top of BBL table as McSweeney sinks Strikers

Nathan McSweeney has made a statement following his release from Australia’s Test side, hitting an unbeaten 78 from 49 balls to help the Heat beat the Strikers in the BBL on Sunday evening in Brisbane.

McSweeney was dropped by Australia after opening in the first three Tests against India, making just 72 runs across his six innings.

He described himself as “devastated” about the snubbing but has bounced back brilliantly, with his innings taking Brisbane to a three-wicket, last-ball victory over Adelaide.

The Strikers batted first and made a competitive 6/174, with the middle order of Chris Lynn (24 from 21), Ollie Pope (34 from 29), Alex Ross (20 from 15), Jamie Overton (45 from 24) and James Bazley (23 from 11) doing the bulk of the scoring.

In response, Brisbane struggled initially, having come into the match as slight favourites across cricket betting sites.

Both Colin Munro (7 from 10) and Jimmy Peirson (8 from 6) fell early, clean bowled by Henry Thornton inside the powerplay.

McSweeney and Matt Renshaw (54 from 27) then combined for a match-defining partnership of 66 runs for the third wicket, with the former going on to drag Brisbane over the line as wickets fell at the other end.

It’s always nice to bounce back,” McSweeney said after he was named player of the match.

“I loved my time on the Australian cricket team.

“You know sharing the changing room with some of Australia’s best players was awesome.

“Hopefully I can continue to get better and learn from my experiences and get back there.

“Probably a common message from a lot of experts, and Marnus (Labuschagne) in particular, just said it’s not where it starts, it’s where it ends.

“I think a good story always has its ups and downs and hopefully mine can.

“When I finish and I’m all done, I [hope] can look back on this and it was a great learning curve.

“And yeah, I really bounced back from it.”

Brisbane now sit on top of the Big Bash League table after winning their opening two matches.

T20 cricket bookmakers have shortened the Heat’s title odds to $5, putting them just behind the Sydney Sixers ($4.33) and Perth Scorchers ($4.50).

Sports news