Northern Districts pulled off a rare and bold tactical move in men’s T20 cricket by retiring out two batters in the same innings to force a thrilling tie against the Otago Cricket Team in Mount Maunganui in the Super Smash. The decision was taken to increase the scoring rate in the final overs, which helped Northern Districts recover from a slow middle phase. It was the first time in the history of men’s T20 cricket that two batters were retired out in a single innings.
Northern Districts batter Jeet Raval was asked to walk back at the start of the 17th over after scoring 23 off 28 balls. In the following over, Xavier Bell was also retired out after scoring nine runs off 13 balls. Instead, Ben Pomare (20 runs off 10 balls) and Scott Kuggeleijn (unbeaten 34 runs off 12 balls) provided a strong finish with strike rates above 200.00. The tactical move helped Northern Districts pull off a successful tie.
Otago Volts batter Max Chu reacted to the tactic and said: “I think it’s probably just happening on the fly. You always feel a little bit bad because they’re not trying to slow the game down,” Chu said to the broadcasters.
Earlier, Otago posted a competitive total of 166/6 in their 20 overs. Chu stayed unbeaten and scored 64 runs off 42 balls. Jamal Todd (32) and Jack Boyle (24) also contributed important runs. For Northern Districts, Tim Pringle and Henry Cooper picked up two wickets each.
For latest sports updates: Follow RevSportz
