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Star all-rounder Marcus Stoinis produced a sensational 19-ball 55 to lead Melbourne Stars to their highest successful chase in the history of the Big Bash League (BBL). Stoinis achieved his half-century in just 19 balls, enabling the Stars to overcome a daunting target of 206 runs set by Adelaide Strikers, who were playing before the season's largest crowd.
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Entering the match with scores of 2, 13, 9, 6, and 0 in his previous five BBL games, Stoinis captivated the New Year's Eve audience with a remarkable fifty - the second quickest by a Stars player in BBL history. Taking charge in the 14th over, Stoinis dominated the field, hitting 4 sixes and 6 fours, guiding his team to victory. He also struck the decisive six on the final ball of the 19th over, securing a win for the Stars with 7 wickets and 6 balls to spare.
"It was good fun, the boys set it up though for me to come out and put a few swings on it. They played really well. It was about time I put a swing on it. I did a bit of work with the coach," Stoinis said after the match.
While pursuing a target of 206, the Stars were excellently set up by Daniel Lawrence (50 off 26), Beau Webster (66* off 48), and Glenn Maxwell (28 off 17). Following Maxwell's dismissal, Stoinis took the crease and aggressively attacked the bowling, successfully hitting 14 of his 19 balls for either fours or sixes.
"My thought hadn't changed after that partnership between Maxi and Beau, they put us in a position where I could come in and express myself. Otherwise, I would have looked to dig deeper and take my time. Once you hit a few in the middle, the body seems to organise itself. It's lovely here, beautiful crowd, 44,000 people, great way ro spend New Year's Eve. Couldn't have more fun," concluded the all-rounder.
Earlier in the game, Chris Lynn's outstanding performance propelled Adelaide to a score of 205/4 in their 20 overs. Lynn's innings featured 10 boundaries and 4 sixes, with valuable support from Matthew Short, who scored 56 off 32 balls. Commentators at the time believed the pitch was conducive for a score exceeding 200, yet the extraordinary innings by Stoinis was unforeseen. For his remarkable performance, Stoinis was awarded the player of the match. Following this victory, the Stars moved up to the fourth position in the league standings.
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