Salt stars in Big Bash; Jordan ends Scorchers stint; Sussex Women selected for The Hundred

A host of Sussex stars continued to impress in Australia over the last seven days, as Jason Gillespie's Adelaide Strikers secured their place in the Big Bash finals. 

The Strikers began the week with an impressive 11-run victory over runaway leaders, Melbourne Stars at Adelaide Oval, with Phil Salt opening the batting and getting his side off to a flying start.

The Sussex batsman smashed 22 off 14 balls with four consecutive fours, but was bowled by Glenn Maxwell when looking to go big again.

Travis Head, our overseas for 2020, was then dismissed for five, but Alex Carey and Jon Wells scored 33 and 55* respectively to set the Stars 163 to win.

In reply, Rashid Khan bowled Stars opener, Nic Maddinson for just seven with his very first ball, while Salt took two brilliant catches to dismiss Marcus Stoinis and Nick Larkin.

Khan eventually finished with miserly figures of 1-24 from his four overs, and the Stars finished on 158-8 from their 20 overs to slip to just their second BBL|09 defeat.

⚡️ Instant impact! ⚡️@rashidkhan_19 struck with his first ball of the night, and @StrikersBBL have just secured a 11-run win! 👏 pic.twitter.com/uYiEQhz55I

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) January 22, 2020

Two days later, it was the battle of the Sharks as the Sussex-heavy Strikers came up against Chris Jordan’s Perth Scorcher at Optus Stadium.

The Strikers opted to bat first and Salt was in scintillating form alongside Jake Weatherald at the top of the order, with the duo putting on 71 for the first wicket.

Salt hit 59 off just 31 deliveries, with seven fours, two sixes and his strike rate of over 190 putting the Strikers in a strong position - before he was eventually dismissed by Ashton Agar.

A third #BBL09 half-century for @PhilSalt1 yesterday! 🙌✨pic.twitter.com/c7JBvQ0TsE

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) January 25, 2020

Jordan bowled three overs for 33 runs, and dismissed former Sussex teammate, Carey on his last appearance for the Scorchers, but the visitors continued to bat well with captain Head scoring 35.

The Scorchers required 182 to win, and Liam Livingstone’s impressive 79 looked set to take them close, but when he was out, and Khan bowled Cameron Bancroft, their chase derailed.

Dizzy’s Strikers eventually won by 16 runs to make it four wins in a row, and headed back to Adelaide to take on Hobart Hurricanes on Saturday night.

What ensued was the highest scoring match in Big Bash history, with the Hurricanes batting first and Matthew Wade scoring a breath-taking 130* off 61 balls.

D’Arcy Short also scored 72, before Salt held on to a smart catch to dismiss the former Durham man, and the Hurricanes eventually finished their explosive 20 overs on 217-1.

The chase looked like a daunting one for the Strikers, but, led by Salt, they gave it everything.

The in-form batsman raced to his fourth Big Bash half-century with ten fours and two huge sixes, and had a strike-rate of 200 before he was caught right on the boundary for 66.

It was an amazing knock from Salt, and the man who replaced him at the crease – Head – continued to pepper the boundaries.

He hit four fours and three sixes, but fell three runs short of a half-century in unlucky fashion when chopping a Scott Boland delivery onto the stumps.  

Khan was also unfortunate to be dismissed LBW for eight straight after he sent a six soaring into the stands, and the Strikers finally fell just ten runs short in an extraordinary match.

Sound on! 😍🔊

Another brilliant #BBL09 fifty for @PhilSalt1 this morning - 66 off 33 balls 💫 pic.twitter.com/mbtzITrDrh

— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) January 26, 2020

Despite their four-match winning streak coming to an end, the Strikers still have a finals berth to look forward to. They will play either the Hurricanes or Sydney Thunder in the Eliminator on Saturday.

Staying Down Under, Luke Wells was back in action for Casey South Melbourne, and opened the batting in their Kookaburra Premier match against Northcote.

The Casey South skipper and Sussex batsman scored 35 off 58 balls at the top of the order, before eventually being dismissed by Jonty Rushton.

The hosts eventually finished on 333-7, with the match continuing on Saturday.

Closer to home, three more Sussex Women were selected for The Hundred, which starts later this year.

Paige Scholfield will be playing for Southern Brave at The 1st Central County Ground alongside Danni Wyatt, while Linsey Smith was picked by Northern Superchargers and Sussex skipper, Georgia Adams joined Oval Invincibles.