Sydney Thunder vs Melbourne Renegades live score, weather, rain, Mohammad Rizwan retired out video, stream, highlights

The Melbourne Renegades’ finals chances are hanging by a thread after the Sydney Thunder stole a remarkable four-wicket victory from the jaws of defeat during Monday’s rain-affected contest at ENGIE Stadium.

At one stage needing 60 runs from 28 balls, all-rounder Chris Green (34* from 13 balls) steered the Thunder towards the reduced target with four deliveries remaining, combining with Nic Maddinson (30* from 17 balls) for an unbeaten 55-run partnership at the death.

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Reeling at 6-95 in the 13th over, it appeared as though the Thunder were staring down the barrel of a heavy defeat before the duo’s late counterpunch, breaking a five-match losing streak for the men in green. Elsewhere, the Renegades are now only a mathematical chance of qualifying for the knockouts having suffered their fifth defeat of the season.

After the Thunder won the toss and chose to bowl first in overcast conditions, fast bowlers Wes Agar (2-23 from four overs) and David Willey (2-39 from four overs) helped restrict the Renegades to 8-170, with all-rounder Hassan Khan hitting a 31-ball 46.

The visitors were seemingly on track for a mammoth total after a rapid 62-run opening partnership from Josh Brown (35 from 25 balls) and Tim Seifert (29 from 25 balls), but Agar shifted momentum back in the Thunder’s favour with two scalps before the drinks break.

The dismissal of young gun Jake Fraser-McGurk, caught by diving gloveman Sam Billings, prompted a brief collapse of 3-7 from 11 deliveries, with England import Willey striking twice in the 11th over.

Pakistani duo Mohammad Rizwan and Hassan Khan rebuilt the innings with a 64-run stand for the fifth wicket before the latter was strategically retired out for 26, bringing captain Will Sutherland to the middle. However, the gamble backfired when Sutherland was run out at the non-striker’s end for 1 during the penultimate over of the innings.

Renegades quick Gurinder Sandu (4-42 from four overs) removed both of the Thunder openers during the Powerplay, with the recalled Sam Konstas nailing a couple of trademark ramps before picking out deep square leg for 18.

Superstar leg-spinner Adam Zampa, returning from a neck injury, trapped Cameron Bancroft on the pads with a slider before a brief rain delay reduced the target to 140 from 16 overs. However, the Thunder lost two wickets immediately after the break, with Fraser-McGurk judged to have completed a juggling catch on the boundary rope despite a lengthy review from the third umpire.

It appeared as though the Renegades were cruising towards victory before Green thumped three consecutive sixes against Sandhu to put the match back in the balance. Sutherland conceded another three boundaries during the penultimate over to put the Thunder within touching distance of the target before Maddinson sealed the unlikely victory at the other end.

Earlier, Thunder captain David Warner was ruled out of the match due to a knee injury he sustained last week, with Billings leading the team in his absence, becoming the club’s 13th skipper.

The Renegades will next host the Perth Scorchers at Marvel Stadium on Thursday, needing nothing less than a heavy victory to keep their season alive, while the Thunder will face cross-town rivals the Sixers in a Sydney derby at the SCG on Friday.

‘NOWHERE NEAR GOOD ENOUGH’: WHY $420K IMPORT WAS RETIRED OUT

Pakistan import Mohammad Rizwan was snapped by the Melbourne Renegades on a $420k platinum deal, but the wicketkeeper has thus far fallen short of expectations with the willow.

The right-hander has a strike rate of 101.82 in this summer’s Big Bash League, the lowest figure among all players with at least 75 runs. Across eight matches, he has only cleared the boundary rope once.

“Rizwan hasn’t had the best of seasons,” former England bowler Isa Guha said on Fox Cricket commentary.

“He needs to lift in this game.”

Australian great Mark Waugh continued: “He needs to be more proactive, you put a lot of pressure on other batters when you’re going at a run a ball.

“A run a ball is just nowhere near good enough, has never been and never will be.”

He added: “If that was a local player, he would not be batting No. 4.”

On Monday evening, Rizwan was unbeaten on 26 when the Renegades coaching staff beckoned him off the ground, retired out to unleash the club’s pinch-hitters for the final two overs of the innings.

“I reckon we’re going to see more of this now,” Waugh said of the strategic gamble.

“I’ve been calling for this for a long time, retiring guys when you’ve got all the power sitting on the bench.”

Former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson added: “It’s a challenging one as a coach, to work through the potential fallout of retiring someone, the significant hit it could have on their ego and having to manage that.”

KONSTAS MENTOR ‘BEWILDERED’ BY DEMOTION

Watson, who mentors Thunder young gun Sam Konstas, has confessed he was “bewildered” when the former Test opener was dropped from the Thunder starting XI last week.

The 20-year-old, who started his Big Bash season with a half-century in Canberra, was demoted to middle order halfway through the campaign, posting scores of 21, 0 and 2 before missing selection for Saturday’s contest against the Heat in Brisbane.

“I was bewildered when I heard that he was left out of the previous match against the Brisbane Heat, just knowing how important he is,” Watson said on Fox Cricket commentary.

“I’ve been disappointed that he’s been batting out of position as well. His best position to bat at the moment with his experience is opening.”

Returning to opener in place of the wounded David Warner on Monday, Konstas attempted a couple of trademark ramps before he was caught in the outfield for 18, falling victim to Renegades seamer Gurinder Sandhu.

THUNDER’S SPIN HEADACHE

Sydney Showgrounds has traditionally been a spinner’s paradise, with the tweakers wreaking havoc on the low, slow deck.

To exploit the spin-friendly conditions at their home ground, the Sydney Thunder packed their squad with tweakers this season – fan favourites Tanveer Sangha and Chris Green were joined by Tom Andrews and Shadab Khan, while Indian legend Ravichandran Ashwin initially penned a deal before missing the T20 competition due to injury.

However, the Thunder have been let down this season by the Sydney Showgrounds curators, who have produced green seamers that have favoured fast bowlers. Spinners took 21 wickets at 21.04 at ENGIE Stadium during last summer’s Big Bash, while this season they have nine scalps at 54.33.

The men in lime green, who qualified for last year’s final, look poised to receive the unwanted wooden spoon, with their spin struggles partly to blame.

“It has been tough for the spinners,” Guha said.

“The (Thunder) squad has been set up for spin, and it hasn’t necessarily done that too much at ENGIE Stadium this season.”

Watson agreed: “The squad was set up for the previous pitch, not this one.”

It’s been a particularly challenging summer for leg-spinner Sangha, dropped from the Thunder starting XI on Monday having taken one wicket across seven matches. Two months ago, he was named in Australia’s T20 squad to face India, but he has since averaged 175.00 in the game’s shortest format.