Allround Jordan gives Hurricanes a winning start

Chris Jordan's all-round effort helped Hobart Hurricanes get their campaign off to a winning start as they sealed a tense four-wicket win over Sydney Thunder at the Bellerive Oval. Apart from taking a catch early on, Jordan removed Sam Billings and Oliver Davies to apply pressure through the middle overs as Hurricanes restricted Thunder to 180 for 6. He then played a decisive hand in the chase, scoring 16 off 13 balls as Hurricanes got home with a delivery to spare.

Asked to bat, Thunder made a brisk start with Matthew Gilkes striking a six and three fours in a seven-ball 20 before falling to Billy Stanlake. Cameron Bancroft and Sam Konstas then put on a steady stand, but Stanlake and Jordan combined for three quick wickets to slow the momentum. Thunder were 79 for 4 at the halfway stage and found scoring difficult over the next five overs, managing only 39 runs even as Bancroft brought up a 37-ball fifty. He briefly lifted the tempo with a six and a four off Nathan Ellis before being dismissed by Stanlake, who finished with figures of 3 for 34. Shadab Khan, after a run-a-ball 14, accelerated in the death overs with a 24-ball 34, while Daniel Sams provided the late surge with an unbeaten 23 off 11.

Hurricanes began the chase positively through Mitchell Owen, whose 14-ball 32 came in a 48-run opening stand with Nikhil Chaudhary. After Owen fell, Chaudhary and Ben McDermott carried the innings forward, taking Hurricanes past 100 in the 11th over. Chaudhary struck three sixes and a four in his 31-ball 41 before being dismissed by Chris Green. Tim David then took on Shadab Khan with a six and two fours, but McDermott was bowled by the legspinner in the same over.

Despite David's dismissal for 17 off nine balls and Rehan Ahmed falling soon after to Shadab, Hurricanes remained in control at 153 for 5 after 16 overs. They needed 13 from the final two overs when Matthew Wade was dismissed by Nathan McAndrew for 25. Jordan eased the pressure with a boundary in that over, leaving four to get from the last. Daniel Sams bowled three dot balls after the scores were level, but Hurricanes eventually crossed the line.

Brief scores: Sydney Thunder 180/6 in 20 overs (Cameron Bancroft 61, Shadab Khan 34; Billy Stanlake 3-34, Chris Jordan 2-26) lost to Hobart Hurricanes 181/6 in 19.5 overs (Nikhil Chaudhary 41, Ben McDermott 38; Shadab Khan 2-36) by 4 wickets.