Redbacks v. Bushies - Pura. Adelaide

[Donny]

Hussey eyes final spot

By Sam Lienert - Fox

VICTORIAN batsman David Hussey believes his side will be all but assured of a berth in the Pura Cup final if it can achieve an outright victory over South Australia in their match starting at Adelaide Oval tomorrow.

Hussey, buoyed by his maiden century in the ING Cup against SA in Victoria's six-run win at the same ground last night, said his side would enter the match full of confidence.

It stems not only from consecutive one-day wins over the Redbacks, but from the history-making victory over New South Wales in Victoria's last Pura Cup outing, in which the Bushrangers chased down 455 in the final innings.

Hussey scored an unbeaten 212 from 218 balls to guide Victoria to that win.

"All our boys are playing pretty good cricket," Hussey said.

"Especially in the Pura Cup we're top of the table by four points.

"We'll be playing for six points and if we get maximum points there we may be in the final, that's what we're all about, that's what we want to do, win the Pura Cup and ING Cup comps."

The Bushrangers lead the Pura Cup table, despite Victoria and SA having a game in hand over the rest of the competition, after their scheduled match at the MCG last week was postponed following the death of Victorian coach David Hookes.

Hussey said his team was happy to have finally played some cricket yesterday, after an emotional time following Hookes' death.

"All the boys were better off for the run," he said.

"I think that's what Hookes would like, just for everybody to get on with it and play the game."

Redbacks skipper Darren Lehmann said with back-to-back Pura Cup games against the Bushrangers to come, with the postponed MCG clash now scheduled for next week, it was a chance for SA to revive its season.

SA is currently in fourth position on the table.

"We need to play well in those and really keep the Vics pointless in both games," Lehmann said.

"And we need to pick up, six points in both would be outstanding, but hopefully pick up an outright and a first innings or whatever it may be.

"Certainly catch up on them and bring them back to the field a little bit as well."

Lehmann said he was pleased with his own form, after recently returning from a three-month lay-off with an achilles tendon injury.

"Things are starting to happen for me with the willow, so hopefully there's a really big score around the corner," he said.

Batsman Greg Blewett suffered a back strain while fielding in yesterday's day-nighter, but Lehmann said he was expected to take his place in the side.

Teams: SA: Darren Lehmann (captain), David Fitzgerald, Shane Deitz, Greg Blewett, Mark Cosgrove, Mick Miller, Graham Manou, John Davison, Mark Cleary, Ryan Harris, Shaun Tait, Paul Rofe.

Vic: Darren Berry (captain), Matthew Elliott, Jason Arnberger, Brad Hodge, Jonathan Moss, David Hussey, Matthew Mott, Cameron White, Andrew McDonald, Mathew Inness, Michael Lewis, Allan Wise. (12th men to be named).

[Donny]

Berry won the toss and will bat.

Mott is in for Arnberger and Inness returns for Harwood.

Victoria team:
MTG Elliott, MP Mott, BJ Hodge, J Moss, DJ Hussey, CL White,
AB McDonald, *+DS Berry, MWH Inness, ML Lewis, AB Wise.

South Australia team:
DA Fitzgerald, SA Deitz, GS Blewett, MJ Cosgrove, *DS Lehmann,
MC Miller, +GA Manou, JM Davison, MF Cleary, SW Tait, PC Rofe.

[Donny]

At lunch, The Bushrangers are 0/54. Mott is 31 n.o. and Elliott, 22.

Only 23 overs were possible as some time was lost due to rain.
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Mott and Elliott are building a solid foundation at 0/88. Mott is 48 n.o. and Elliott, 36 n.o.
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50 overs gone and The Vics are 1/133 with Elliott on 61 n.o. Motty made 53.

[Donny]

The Bushies are looking very solid on 1/187 with Elliott on 83 n.o. and Hodge, 38 n.o.
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Elliott sure knows how to build an innings. Very careful early, now blossoming. He's 110 n.o. and Hodge, 53 n.o.

The score is 1/229.
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Elliott made 111 and Hodge, 81. Moss is 20 n.o. and The Bushies are 3/286 from 87 overs.
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4/296 as Moss goes for 27. Rofe has 3/49.
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Paul Rofe has singlehandedly kept The Redbacks in this game. He dismissed White for a duck and has 4/57.

At stumps, Victoria is 5/310.

[Donny]

Elliott ton gives Vics edge - Fox

VICTORIAN opener Matthew Elliott scored his third century of the season to give the top-placed Bushrangers the upper hand on day one of their Pura Cup match against South Australia at Adelaide Oval today.

But SA paceman Paul Rofe took 4-57, including three wickets in five overs with the second new ball late in the day, to prevent Victoria from taking too big an advantage.

At stumps, Victoria were 5-310, with David Hussey on 12 and Andrew McDonald on eight.

Elliott scored 111 from 218 balls, with 10 boundaries, to take his first-class average for the season to 56.5.

He started scratchily, with Rofe regularly beating him in a rain-interrupted first session, helped by plenty of early life in the pitch.

Elliott and Matthew Mott (53) took 41 overs to build a century opening stand, before Mott fell, caught at mid-off from Rofe's bowling.

But Elliott blossomed late in the day, with he and Brad Hodge sharing a 134-run second wicket partnership at better than four per over.

After taking 131 balls to reach 50, Elliott's last 61 runs came in 87 balls.

Elliott said he and Mott were lucky to make it through the opening session on a seaming pitch.

"All the plays and misses, we were a bit fortunate things went our way in that regard," he said.

"But I think we played particularly well in the middle session and just before the second new ball and scored quick enough to get 300 in a day ... to make 300 in a day on that wicket was a very good effort for us."

Elliott eventually fell LBW to part-time medium pacer Mark Cosgrove, brought into the attack by SA skipper Darren Lehmann when his frontline bowlers were causing Hodge and Elliott few troubles.

Hodge also continued his brilliant recent form, scoring 81 from 116 balls, with 12 fours, including consecutive boundaries from off-spinner John Davison to bring up his half-century.

He looked headed for a century before Rofe trapped him LBW with his first over with the second new ball late in the day.

It sparked a Victorian slump, with Rofe taking the wickets of Jonathan Moss (27) and Cameron White (0), both caught behind.

Rofe said he had been frustrated early in the day to be creating chances but not taking wickets, but said it was partly a result of the ball moving too much to find edges.

"You saw the rain that fell, the wicket was always going to be a little bit sticky, so some of those balls were beating the bat by five or six inches, so it wasn't a huge drama," he said.

[Donny]

The Bushies could only get to 343 as Rofe continued his excellent form. He took 7/66 and didn't do his Sri Lana tour prospects any harm at all.

The Redbacks opened with 83 from Deitz (46) and Fitzgerald (47) but by 110 they and Blewett were out. Allan Wise (2/53) got both openers.

From then on, a few batsmen got starts but Cameron White (4/43) and Mick Lewis (3/47) took the last 7 wickets to see S.A. out for 262 and their team with a lead of 81. Lehmann made 38.

At stumps, The Vics were 1/16 with Mott the batsman out.

[Donny]

White rips through SA

By Sam Lienert - Fox

VICTORIAN leg-spinner Cameron White ripped through the South Australian lower order, taking four wickets to hand the top-placed Bushrangers a first-innings lead on a see-sawing second day of their Pura Cup match at Adelaide Oval.

At stumps, Victoria was 1-13 in its second innings, with opener Matthew Mott out lbw to SA paceman Shaun Tait for six runs from one hit.

It gave the Bushrangers an overall 94-run lead, after they bowled SA out for 262 today to lead by 81 on the first innings.

The two first-innings points pushed Victoria six points clear on top of the Pura Cup table on a day when 16 wickets fell.

Victoria started the day with the upper hand, resuming its first innings at 5-310.

But it took just 45 minutes to lose the last five wickets for another 33 runs to be all out for 343.

SA paceman Paul Rofe took 7-66, his best haul of the season.

Redbacks openers David Fitzgerald (47) and Shane Deitz (46) then completed a dream session for the home side by going to lunch at 0-59.

They took their stand to 83 in the second session, at which stage SA looked to be well on top, before left-arm paceman Allan Wise, the pick of the Victorian quicks, snared both openers to make it 2-110.

The Redbacks were 4-174 and still looking a good chance to take first innings points when White was introduced to the attack in the 50th over.

He ran through the SA middle and lower order, with his most important scalp that of Redbacks skipper Darren Lehmann, caught at backward point for 38.

White also claimed tailender John Davison (2, who had looked threatening with three sixes, including two in two balls from the only over bowled by medium pacer Jonathan Moss.

Disappointingly for SA, the top nine batsmen reached double figures, but none made a half-century.

White finished with 4-43, his second four-wicket haul for the season, after taking 4-27 against Queensland at the Gabba in Victoria's first game.

"I haven't got four or three for a while, so it's nice to get a few on the board, hopefully I can get a few more next innings," he said.

[Donny]

Lewis went (lbw to Rofe) early but Elliott and Hodge added 39 before Tait claimed Elliott for 28.

It's 3/61 and a 142 lead.
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4/102 with Hodge batting well on 40 n.o. Cleary dismissed Moss for 8. The lead is 183. This Hodge/Hussey partnership now assumes great importance.
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At lunch. it's 4/126 and the lead is 206. Hodge is heading for a good double. He's 53 n.o. to go with his first innings 81.

[JLC]

Chances are that Hohns or Hiltidch will be at the game to watch the progression of Lehmann from injury. So they may have seen the knocks of Hodge and Elliott.

jlc

[Donny]

Hodge moves on to 81 n.o. and Hussey to 38 n.o. Their partnership is 84 and the Bushies lead is 256.

[JLC]

Vics have collapsed to 6-199

Game is poised very nicely.....having said that the Vics will win easily....lol

jlc

[Donny]

It's 8/249 with White on 52 n.o. The lead is 330.

Hodge made 86 and Hussey, 41. Davison has 3/66 and Cleary, 2/43
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Lehmann gets Inness and the lead is 333. Unless White and Wise can add a few you'd have to say The Redbacks are in a winning position with 120 odd overs still left in this game.
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White clouts Lehmann for 2 mighty sixes and a 3 to move on to 75 n.o. and retains the strike. The lead is 353.

White is caught at long on. Davison takes 4/72.

The Redbacks need 354 to win from 117 overs. 3 r.p.o.

[Donny]

Inness and Wise dismissed the openers and The Redbacks are 2/39 after 10 overs.

[Donny]

Lehmann, Blewett hold SA hopes

Fox

EXPERIENCED batsmen Darren Lehmann and Greg Blewett held South Australia's victory hopes in their hands at stumps on day three of the Pura Cup match against Victoria at Adelaide Oval today.

Chasing 354 in the final innings to win, SA was 2-75 at the close of play, with skipper Lehmann on 22 and Blewett on 38, the pair having put on a 46-run unbroken stand.

It set up an enticing last day, with the Redbacks needing 279 more runs tomorrow to win and stay in touch with top-placed Victoria on the Pura Cup table, while the Bushrangers needed eight more wickets to virtually sew up a berth in the final.

After leading by 81 on the first innings, Victoria resumed its second innings at 1-13 today, and was all out for 272 early in the final session.

Brad Hodge continued his excellent season by top-scoring with 86, to go with his 81 in the first innings, before he was caught at leg-slip from the bowling of off-spinner John Davison.peAll-rounder Cameron White was the other major contributor with the bat for the Bushrangers, with a valuable innings of 75, assisted by the ability of Victoria's tailenders to hang around and give him batting time.

White's innings came off 97 balls, and included seven boundaries and three sixes, ensuring SA would face a testing target.

Davison eventually had White caught attempting another big hit, to give him figures of 4-72.

SA's run-chase started poorly when it lost openers David Fitzgerald (two) and Shane Deitz (11) cheaply to be 2-29 in the 10th over, with left-arm pacemen Mathew Inness and Allan Wise each picking up one wicket.

[Donny]

An important wicket for the Bushies as Wise (2/25) gets the edge from Blewett (45) and The redbacks are 3/89.
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Go Wisey !! Another wicket. Cosgrove out, caught by Berry. Wise has 3/29.
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Wise (4/36) grabs another as The Bushies take the upper hand. MIller out for 7.
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And another !! Manou out for a duck. Wise has 5/36. Fantastic bowling from the young bloke.