Fittingly enough, the teams located in cricket hotbeds are the ones battling it out for the SCL crown as the league closes down its season. This will be a first to four wins series, all located in this post.
Melbourne is hosting Johannesburg for the first two games. Wiebe Becker cranked out 144 for Johannesburg to start. Charlie Thompson answered with 279 for Melbourne, giving them the lead. Normando Alonso crushed 745 for the Lions to give them a large lead. Theodore White chipped 258 for the Renegades. Ken Howard knocked 328 for Johannesburg, maintaining the lead. Sancho Ramos launched 1385 for Melbourne, flipping the script of the game as the hosts surge ahead. Lucio Adame couldn't keep pace for the Lions, hitting only 171. Rana Naqvi had 141 in response for the Renegades. Oshri Aharonov had to stop at 101 for Johannesburg after cheating the bounce a bit. Sikke Eichel hit a measly 20 points for Melbourne as the offense fades. Pieter Hendrickx tripped up at 28 for the Lions, taking the loss with 1517 total points. Stanley Watts tacked on 736 for the Renegades, making it a final of 2819. Melbourne leads the series 1-0.
In game 2, Wiebe Becker hit 560 for Johannesburg, a much stronger opening. Charlie Thompson took 353 back for Melbourne. Normando Alonso slapped another 445 for the Lions, continuing to keep them strong. Theodore White struggled with rhythm, taking just 175 for the Renegades. Ken Howard poked another 298 for Johannesburg as they maintain the lead. Sancho Ramos pulled back with 354 for Melbourne, chipping away slightly at the deficit. Lucio Adame swatted 655 for the Lions, continuing to be the heart of their offense. Rana Naqvi grabbed 281 for the Renegades, as the game slips from their grasp. Oshri Aharonov padded the lead with 245 for Johannesburg. Sikke Eichel took 218 for Melbourne. Pieter Hendrickx contributed 51 for the Lions, leaving them at 2254. Stanley Watts knocked 490 for the Renegades, flipping one ball to the back 6s early but failing to get the right touch on a similar play later, as the hosts fell with 1871. The series heads to South Africa tied at 1.
Game 3 saw Charlie Thompson set the tone early on with 585 for Melbourne. Wiebe Becker hit just 49 points for Johannesburg, digging an early hole. Theodore White kept the Renegades at full speed with 606. Normando Alonso struggled to 57 points for the Lions, as home proves less of a sanctuary than the road. Sancho Ramos let up a bit with 218 for Melbourne. Ken Howard knocked 359 for Johannesburg, giving the team a sign of life. Rana Naqvi batted 400 for the Renegades. Lucio Adame put the Lions at rock bottom, hitting only 7. Sikke Eichel had 40 for Melbourne as they enter cruise control. Oshri Aharonov only got 54 back for Johannesburg. Stanley Watts lined 361 for the Renegades, producing a final of 2210. Pieter Hendrickx continued to struggle with 25 points putting the Lions at a brutal loss with 551. Melbourne owns a 2-1 series lead as the series enters its break.
The festivities continued on Wednesday, still in Johannesburg for game 4. Charlie Thompson wrangled just 69 for Melbourne. Wiebe Becker couldn't do much better with 78 for Johannesburg in a slow start to the game. Theodore White ended up at 41 for the Renegades. Normando Alonso managed just 69 for the Lions, making the pivotal game look absolutely pathetic. Sancho Ramos flubbed his batting to produce 84 for Melbourne, continuing the embarrassing play. Ken Howard had a relative blast with 405 for Johannesburg, building up a significant lead for this game. Rana Naqvi pulled the Renegades back in the game by slicing 504. Lucio Adame barely kept the Lions in the lead with 246. Sikke Eichel shot back with 249 for Melbourne, keeping them in the hunt. Oshri Aharonov launched 545 for Johannesburg. Stanley Watts pummeled 385 for the Renegades, but they lost with 1332. Pieter Hendrickx put up 49 to ice the Lions win at 1392. The series heads back to Australia tied at 2.
In game 5, Wiebe Becker led off for Johannesburg, hitting 463 to give them a nice start. Charlie Thompson kept Melbourne close by striking 450. Normando Alonso faltered with 192 for the Lions, potentially endangering their chances. Theodore White proved relentless in gaining redemption, pounding out 847 for the Renegades. Ken Howard poked 162 for Johannesburg, failing to cover the deficit. Sancho Ramos slammed 392 for Melbourne, extending the lead. Lucio Adame churned out 250 for the Lions, pulling them back into the game a bit. Rana Naqvi supplied the Renegades with 111. Oshri Aharonov edged Johannesburg closer with 225. Sikke Eichel tapped 272 for Melbourne, maintaining the lead. Pieter Hendrickx chipped 215 for the Lions, leaving them at a loss with 1507. Stanley Watts batted another 392 for the Renegades, sealing their win at 2464. Melbourne will look toward the title on the road, leading 3-2 in the series.
Game 6 began with Charlie Thompson struggling to 112 for Melbourne to get going. Wiebe Becker continued to fail at home, hitting 82 for Johannesburg. Theodore White scored 199 for the Renegades on the much less offense-oriented pitch. Normando Alonso knocked 338 for the Lions to take the lead. Sancho Ramos ripped 1084 to give Melbourne a huge lead, as rain started to fall from the sky. Ken Howard only tracked to 192 for Johannesburg, putting them in some danger of a loss. Rana Naqvi activated cruise control a bit early for the Renegades with 96 points. Lucio Adame again tripped up to just a measly 9 points for the Lions at the worst possible time. Sikke Eichel kept it simple with 112 for Melbourne, trying to bring about a quick finish to the game. Oshri Aharonov only wrangled 66 for Johannesburg, likely giving the game away at that point. Stanley Watts scored 57 to give the Renegades a final of 1660, which should hold up. Pieter Hendrickx made it official, hitting just 115 as the Lions lost with 802. The Melbourne Renegades are SCL champions on a 4-2 series win.
Unfortunately, the Summer Cricket League did not capitalize on the success of the UPCL Cricket season, and suffered low attendance and popularity. The six-player team format is unpopular, and the players did not play at the same standard as UPCL players. The Showcase games from the first half of the season were a hit, so the SCL teams may remain as a touring option for UPCL draft prospects, but not much else is expected as the season has ended. With that, the UPCL preseason games could be played next week, although they may not be recapped. UPCL Cricket action will pick up sometime after August 24.
No comments:
Post a Comment