Sixers star's jaw-dropping 50 off 15 balls

Dan Christian might just be Australia's most under-rated cricketer.

The 37-year-old is hardly a household name yet he is keeping trophy engravers in work all around the globe.

Christian has an incredible eight T20 titles to his name: three in Australia and England and one apiece in South Africa and the West Indies.

And the street-smart Sydney Sixers all-rounder was at it again on Sunday, smoking the second fastest 50 in BBL history then shutting down the Adelaide Strikers run chase with his canny bowling.

Carlos Brathwaite claims Alex Carey

Christian came to the crease at Blundstone Arena with the Sixers' innings going nowhere.

At 3-58 in the 12th over, Christian tapped coach Greg Shipperd on the shoulder and promised to have a right old slog.

Fifteen balls later he was raising his bat that ranked below only Chris Gayle's ridiculous 12 ball assault in the biggest bashing stakes.

https://twitter.com/wwos/status/1340593298256375808?s=20

No shame in being second to the 'Universe Boss,' and Christian ranked the knock highly among his many career achievements after the defending champion Sixers cruised to a 38 run win in Hobart.

"Right up there, particularly given the situation of the game," Christian told Fox Sports.

"They got off to an absolute flyer, Dan Worrall was fantastic with the new ball and it was a pretty ordinary wicket.

"I didn't have much choice but to go out and play a few shots and luckily I got away with a few."

Modest to say the least, particularly given the world's best T20 bowler, Rashid Khan, was one of the Strikers he took down with two of his five sixes.

https://twitter.com/wwos/status/1340594594703151106?s=20

Christian revealed he changed tack against the Afghanistan spin bowling superstar.

"I haven't really swept him in the past, I've tended to play him down the ground and basically not to get out to him.

"But today I had to play a few shots and I felt like the sweep was going to be the best option.

"The boundaries aren't enormous here so luckily I got away with a few."

Suitably warmed up, Christian then tapped his skipper on the shoulder, got his mitts on the Kookaburra and immediately removed Adelaide dangerman Phil Salt for 28.

He then returned in the later stages and bowled pin-point yorkers from wide around the wicket to finish with 1-25 from four overs.

https://twitter.com/freak4cric/status/1340616206688997377?s=20

"That's the beauty of being an all-rounder – when you feel you're having a good night, everything clicks into place," Christian said.

"I did say to Dan Hughes at the start to get me on early because I feel like I'm having a good night.

"Luckily I got that wicket in the first over and justified it."

Christian did represent Australia 35 times (19 ODIs, 16 T20s) and went close to the Test team.

But you wonder what Christian might have achieved in the international arena if he was born in a different country.

Andrew Symonds was Fox Cricket's analyst on the night and a good man to talk about him.

https://twitter.com/wwos/status/1340582328649789440?s=20

As with Christian, many focused on Symonds' sheer power and overlooked his fine cricket brain.

"He's not slogging, he's just ball striking," Symonds noted.

"His balance, his back foot is on the ground when he's hitting the ball so he's giving himself a good chance of hitting it to the boundary.

"He's got a method to his cricket.

"The way he bowled tonight as well, got a wicket to break that early partnership and then later in the night to choke the flow of runs was very clever as well."

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply