Boland, O'Neill and Perry run through New South Wales to put Victoria in control – T20 IPL 2024

Victoria 196 (Tremain 4-32) & 131 for 6 (Dean 53) lead New South Wales 102 (O’Neill 4-23, Perry 3-26, Boland 3-36) by 225 runs

A career-best return from Fergus O’Neill and a trademark display of metronomic MCG bowling from Scott Boland helped Victoria take control of a low-scoring Sheffield Shield clash against New South Wales as the Blues’ batting woes continued.

Travis Dean‘s patient half-century and an unbeaten 40 from Peter Handscomb in the afternoon helped Victoria build a lead of 225 with four wickets in hand at stumps on day two, although NSW fought back well with the ball to avoid the game getting away from them.

But the damage was done earlier in the day. Four wickets from O’Neill, three from Boland and three from Mitchell Perry saw NSW bowled out for just 102 in reply to Victoria’s first innings total of 196. O’Neill finished with career-best figures of 4 for 23.

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It was the ninth time in the Blues’ last 15 consecutive winless Shield matches that they were bowled out for under 200 and the third innings in a row after scoring just 186 and 136 in their loss to South Australia in Adelaide last week.

O’Neill and Boland were masterful with the new ball hitting an immaculate line and length on the spicy MCG track. O’Neill rattled the stumps of both openers. Daniel Hughes was bowled in the second over after a length ball climbed and hit his bottom elbow as he tried to defend and Ryan Hackney scored just 2 in 30 deliveries before leaving a ball that pitched on middle and hit the top of off. O’Neill was then on a hat-trick when he scratched Moises Henriques’ outside edge to leave NSW 7 for 3.

Perry got in on the act with Jason Sangha and Matthew Gilkes both caught well in the slips before Boland returned to remove the obdurate Blake Macdonald who had replaced the axed Kurtis Patterson. He made 22 off 87 balls but Boland’s suffocating length and line did for him as he chopped on trying to withdraw the bat late.

Boland clean bowled Ben Dwarshuis shortly after to give him figures off 11-6-8-2. He should have had Jack Edwards cheaply but he was dropped twice in the slips by the usually reliable Handscomb and Matt Short.

The reprieves meant NSW could avoid an unwanted record. At 54 for 8 they were staring their lowest ever Shield score at the MCG in the face with the previous record of 66, set in 1894, still 12 runs away.

But Edwards and Jackson Bird swung hard and rode their luck to push NSW beyond three figures. Bird’s 29 included a massive six down the ground off Boland. The Australia Test quick claimed Edwards in the end but his figures took some damage, finishing with 3 for 36 from 15 overs.

Victoria turned a 94-run lead into an 184-run buffer for the loss of just Marcus Harris and Will Pucovski in their second innings as Dean ground his way to the first half-century of the match with some disciplined defending and controlled punches into gaps.

Chris Tremain continued his good form in removing Harris, who is struggling early in a season where a Test spot is set to open up, and Pucovski having cleaned up Victoria’s first innings in the morning, taking his tally for the match to six.

But Dean and Handscomb frustrated NSW until Dwarshuis broke through claiming Dean caught behind. Henriques brought himself on and sparked a mini-collapse. Short was given out to a questionable lbw decision with the ball appearing to hit him outside the line then Will Sutherland was trapped lbw next ball to leave his opposing captain on a hat-trick and Victoria teetering at 92 for 5.

Handscomb remained composed and guided the hosts to stumps but there was one more twist late with Sam Harper edging behind in the final over to give the Blues a glimmer of hope. Such was the dominance of the fast bowlers, Australia’s two Test spinners, Nathan Lyon and Todd Murphy, bowled just three overs between them for the day – all of them by Lyon.

Alex Malcolm is an Associate Editor at ESPNcricinfo

Source: ESPN Crickinfo

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