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The Indian Premier League (IPL) has given many cricketers a chance to showcase their talents, but many times, the IPL teams might miss out on gems, who then prove their mettle in other T20 leagues around the world. One such player is Ben McDermott, who went unsold at the IPL 2022 mega auction with a base price of Rs 50 Lakhs, who was in splendid touch during Hampshire’s Vitality T20 Blast match against Middlesex on Tuesday, June 7, at the Radlett Cricket Club.
The right-handed batter, who has been in impressive form over the last year, has scored runs at will for Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash League (BBL) and for Australia at the international level as well. The 27-year-old smashed a 30-ball 83 which powered Hampshire to a nine-wicket victory with 48 balls to spare. After being put in to bat first, Middlesex put up a competitive 142/7 on the board but McDermott's feats gave them an impressive and easy win.
His innings included 74 runs from just boundaries, with five fours and an impressive nine sixes to his name, McDermott, who had a very impressive strike rate of 276.66, eventually lost his wicket to Martin Andersson but it was too late as the batter had already scored more than half the runs that Hampshire needed for the win.
Bowling first, Hampshire's Liam Dawson picked up three wickets at an economy rate of 3.50, hardly allowing the Middlesex batters to settle in the crease. After restricting Middlesex to a sub-par score, McDermott threw in the kitchen sink during Hampshire’s run-chase.
McDermott and skipper James Vince stitched together a crucial 132-run stand for the opening wicket of 9.4 overs to wreak havoc on the Middlesex bowling attack. The Australian opener was ruthless in his stroke-making and was ably supported by Vince, who also scored a half-century, carrying the bat with an unbeaten 37-ball knock of 54.
Despite the win, Hampshire stays glued to the bottom half of the South Group. Meanwhile, McDermott is currently the leading run-scorer for Hampshire in the ongoing tournament, having scored 239 runs from six matches at an average of 39.83 and a strike rate of 170.71. Apart from Middlesex, McDermott also scored a half-century against Sussex, guiding his team to a 22-run win at the Rose Bowl in Southampton.
