HUSSEY STANDS FIRM TO PILOT WARRIORS TO VICTORY
By his own admission, Michael Hussey's first-class performances have fluctuated over the last twelve months. He produced disappointing returns in the last Australian domestic summer, has delivered a mix of scores at the outset of this one, and sandwiched a record-breaking debut county season in between them.
But he showed his one-day form to be as reliable as ever today when he crafted a tremendous century to lead Western Australia to a five wicket win, with nine deliveries to spare, in the ING Cup match against Tasmania here at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.
Aided in no small measure by the resilient Justin Langer (57) in the midst of a 98-run partnership for the fourth wicket, the stylish left hander was the architect of a fightback that saw the Warriors overcome potential ruin at 3/39 to comfortably overhaul the Tigers' score of 7/241.
"It's always nice to try and get as many as you can in a difficult situation, and always nice to make runs. When you're not going so well, you really try and appreciate the good times," said Hussey of his unbeaten 103 shortly after the match.
"We just needed a good partnership, really. Fortunately, Justin and I were able to get together and turned the momentum our way."
"It was an important win for us. We were second last on the table going in, so it was a must-win game for us to keep us in touch with the rest of the competition. Hopefully, we can continue to play some decent cricket in the coming matches."
On a landmark day for Tasmanian cricket - headlined by the christening of the spectacular new grandstand at the southern end of the ground - captain Ricky Ponting (94) inspired a heartening start for the locals by winning the toss and lifting his team to a mark of 2/144 at one stage.
But slow left arm bowler Brad Hogg (4/50) rapidly pulled the rug out from under the innings, varying his flight and the extent of his wrist spin intelligently. He seized the crucial wicket of Ponting by bowling him around his legs, then removed three of the Tiger captain's middle order colleagues on the way to the attainment of career-best figures.
The ever-dependable Jamie Cox (48*) and the patient Shaun Young (46) kept the Tigers' scoreboard flowing but the final total always looked respectable rather than impregnable.
Pace bowler Damien Wright (2/22) produced yet another brilliant one-day performance to confirm Western Australia's early difficulties as the visitors' reply began.
He finally found the edge of the bat of Adam Gilchrist (20) after several efforts at going past it, then induced Simon Katich (8) to chop another delivery to a fine gully. David Saker (1/43) helped in the task of committing the Warriors to grave difficulty by convincing Umpire John Smeaton of the merits of an lbw decision against Murray Goodwin (1).
But, while Wright is a "special" for Australia 'A' selection later in the season according to Tasmanian coach Greg Shipperd, most of his fellow bowlers were anything but. Too short, too errant in line, and too undisciplined when it needed to plug away manfully, the home team conceded as many as 80 runs in one crucial passage of nine overs with the match hanging in the balance. It ensured that the Warriors vaulted past them into third place on the competition standings.
A crucial lbw decision against Hussey was turned down with his score at 41, but Shipperd was more concerned with the lack of support for Wright and the fact that eight shots at the stumps from fieldsmen with run outs in the offing all missed their targets.
Hussey's innings, meanwhile, was as strongly fortified as Bellerive's striking new attraction. He serially hit the ball into gaps and paced his innings perfectly in the circumstances. His driving through mid off and the covers was a delight, and his glancing and working of the ball off the line of leg stump lost little by comparison. It was his third domestic limited-overs century and might well have been the best of them.
By the end, the only genuine winner for Tasmania was the state's economy.
Eighteen-year old James Anderson, a casino employee from the Hobart suburb of Montrose, became the first person in Australia to benefit from ING's new 'Catch a Trump' promotion, intercepting an Adam Gilchrist six on the full to pocket a cool $1,000.
Two other spectators also availed themselves of the sponsor's cash with expertly completed catches in a near-perfect exhibition beyond the boundary ropes. It stood in contrast with the efforts of their fellow Tasmanians inside them.
