This is the beauty of the game! No matter how magnificently a team performs in the group stage, one game can change everything in the knockouts. Perth Scorchers, who topped the points table in the group round and lost just two matches in that phase, were handed a 71-run defeat by Hobart Hurricanes in the first semi-final on Thursday.

Being among the bottom four, the former champions – Sydney Sixers, Sydney Thunder and Brisbane Heat were already out of the tournament. With three-time champion Scorchers’ exit, the tournament will see a new champion in its seventh edition. Hurricanes will play in the final against the winner of the clash between Melbourne Renegades and Adelaide Strikers.

Hobart Hurricanes came into this game with a 3-match losing streak, whereas Perth enjoyed the same amount of successive wins before the semi-finals.

In the first semi-final in Perth, the home-team decided to bowl first after winning the toss. Hobart Hurricanes showed no mercy to the opponents and went on to smash the ball frequently. They registered a total of 210 runs for 4 wickets in 20 overs.

Hurricanes’ opener Matthew Wade picked up his first half-century in the tournament. And what a time to get that fifty! He scored 71 runs before getting dismissed by Tim Bresnan.

Another unbeaten knock of 67 runs from Ben McDermott and a 37-run innings from Daniel Christian powered the Hobart-based franchise to pose a daunting total. McDermott scored the runs with a stunning strike-rate of 223.

McDermott and Daniel stitched an 88-run stand off just 39 deliveries before the later got run out. The two batsmen before Ben McDermott – opener Tim Paine and the team’s captain George Bailey made 4 runs and 7 runs, respectively. Bresnan bagged the wicket of the Hurricane skipper while Matthew Kelly got Paine out.

Chasing the mammoth total, Perth lost their way and kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Their openers – Michael Klinger and Shaun Marsh scored 15 and 30 runs, respectively. But the rest of the batsmen could not go past 5 runs until the 8^th batter, Tim Bresnan. He came and stood firm for his team for a while.

Bresnan made 43 runs and Jhye Richardson accompanied him in order to lessen the gap between the two teams’ totals. Richardson was out scoring 16 runs. Following his departure, Matthew Kelly got dismissed scoring 7 runs and Bresnan was the last man to get out as Hobart Hurricanes restricted the Scorchers to 139 runs in 17.5 overs.

Daniel Christian bowled beautifully and scalped the last three wickets of the game. He took a total of four wickets while another bowler – Thomas Rogers destroyed the Perth batting line-up by dismissing the three top-order batsmen. Riley Meredith and Clive Rose also got one wicket apiece.