In his final match of the season for the Sydney Sixers before heading off to play for England, Sam Curran took charge as his team surged to a second-place finish, securing a spot in the Qualifier. They’re set to take on the Perth Scorchers in that matchup on Tuesday, January 20. 

 

On Sunday evening, the Sydney Sixers and Brisbane Heat faced off in a do-or-die clash, with three teams already through to the next round and three others knocked out. Curran's explosive half-century, along with some solid runs from Steve Smith, was complemented by Mitchell Starc's impressive four-wicket haul, which laid the foundation for the Sixers' win. 

 

Starc was relentless against the Heat. He started strong, showing his usual sharpness, though he had a bit of luck on his side—Jack Wildermuth hit a full toss to cover, but Matt Renshaw fell for a delivery that moved away and ended up edging it. With two early wickets, the Heat found themselves in a tough spot at 18 for 3 by the third over.

 

Starc’s four-for restricts Heat to 171 as Smith, Curran steer Sixers in chase

 

In the 15th over, Starc caught another break when Jimmy Peirson misplayed a wide full toss, sending it straight to Curran at extra cover. Starc then took some pace off the ball to dismiss Xavier Bartlett, who was caught at mid-off, wrapping up his figures at 4 for 35.

 

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Despite the pressure, the Heat managed to post 171 runs, thanks to Nathan McSweeney, who anchored the innings with a solid 69 not out off 54 balls, and Michael Neser, who swung for the fences from No. 8, smashing 35 runs off just 14 balls, including five fours and two sixes. The Heat turned things around from 96 for 5 in 14 overs to finish at 171 for 9 in 20, with two overs yielding 16 runs each and one over bringing in 18. 

 

They really brought some energy into the second innings, kicking things off with a solid start during the PowerPlay by taking down Babar Azam and Josh Philippe. But it was Steven Smith who stole the spotlight again, following up his impressive century. Two strong partnerships 43 runs off 34 balls with Moises Henriques and 60 off 40 with Curran helped the Heat bounce back.

 

This trio made sure the Sixers stayed ahead of the required run rate in the first half. The Heat then tried to slow things down with a few quieter overs. Xavier Bartlett and Zaman Khan did an excellent job during the Power Surge (the 15th and 16th overs), giving away just 8 and 5 runs, respectively. Zaman even managed to dismiss Smith, who scored 54 off 40 balls, but the Sixers maintained their grip on the game without needing to be overly flashy. 

 

As the equation tightened to 35 runs needed off 24 balls, the balance still leaned towards the Sixers. Neser gave away 7 runs in the 17th over, keeping that balance intact. However, Curran turned the game on its head in the 18th over, smashing two sixes off Matthew Kuhnemann and reaching his half-century in just 26 balls. With 11 runs needed off 12 balls, the penultimate over unfolded with: 4, 6, W, 6, as Lachlan Shaw was dismissed with the scores tied. Jack Edwards then clinched the victory with a powerful hit.