Big Bash League: Ashton Turner’s spectacular return to form powers Perth Scorchers to road victory

Ashton Turner has fallen agonisingly short of becoming the fifth man to score a century for Perth Scorchers, but spearheaded a crucial road win over Sydney Thunder.

In a savage innings, Turner made 99 off 41 — his biggest-ever Twenty20 score — to turn around a lean run of form and a top-order collapse.

The Scorchers brutalised the Thunders’ three spin bowlers in a score of 8-202 before Joel Paris, Cooper Connolly, Brody Couch and Aaron Hardie took two wickets each in the defence at ENGIE Stadium on Tuesday night. Sydney could only reach 131 in a 71-run defeat.

Connolly took 2-26 from three overs to continue strong form with the ball, Paris took 2-28 and Hardie’s two scalps came for just seven runs from two overs.

It is also a significant tick for Perth’s under-fire bowling attack, who put together their best performance for the season. The win leaves Adam Voges’ side with a 2-2 record ahead of Thursday’s return clash with Hobart.

Turner had scored 36 runs across three matches to start the season and walked to the crease at 3-34 after the early wickets of Mitch Marsh, Finn Allen and Josh Inglis.

The inspirational captain struck two sixes to start the final over. His teammate and good friend Ashton Agar was visibly frustrated when a straight drive went for four, rather than a single in the final over. He was dismissed next ball that left Turner stranded at the non-striker’s end and denied him a maiden century.

New rules which mean the new batter must face the next ball meant they couldn’t cross.

His previous high score was an unbeaten 84 in the qualifying final against Sydney Sixers in 2023.

Turner played his match-ups to perfection, taking off-spinner Chris Green for 22 off an over early in his innings and got a good early grasp of a tacky wicket.

Connolly reached 28 after taking down Shadab Khan and Hardie made the same score before falling in the penultimate over.

Both Marsh and Allen struck sixes only to fall the very next ball. Marsh launched Nathan McAndrew over mid-wicket before he was caught behind and Allen got lucky with a leading edge before he was caught playing a similar shot off Reece Topley.

Marsh’s dismissal was the Thunder’s first powerplay wicket this season.

Then Perth went through the gears in an obvious plan to get after the Thunder’s spinners. Inglis — playing his first game of the season after he was released from the Test squad — hit Green for six before driving him on the up for four. He was out for 13 off nine.

Connolly took a liking to Pakistan international Shadab Khan who dropped several balls short, then Turner hit his 100th Big Bash League six and unloaded on Green in the ninth over.

“T20 cricket, there’s not much time to rest on your laurels ... sometimes you have to throw caution to the wind to some extent, try and take calculated risks,” Turner said.

The tyro all-rounder was the fourth wicket to fall when he tried to heave a Daniel Sams ball across the line in the deep.

Prized import Laurie Evans hit Khan for a straight six but fell lbw to the same bowler moments later after a not-out call was overturned on review. The middle-overs hiccup stunted Turner’s work, but the power surge — taken for the 17th and 18th over — cost the Thunder 0-35 and got him moving again.

A rapid 52-run partnership with Turner was broken when Hardie top-edged a Topley slower ball to wicketkeeper Sam Billings

Thunder captain David Warner was their biggest threat and he loomed large when the Scorchers failed to take a wicket in the powerplay for the first time this year.

Young quick Mahli Beardman ended a 60-run opening stand when Warner picked out a fielder at long-off and his partner Matt Gilkes went shortly after in an embarrassing run-out blunder where he charged down the wicket after the ball had cannoned into Sam Konstas’ pads.

Connolly was on a hat-trick when Cam Bancroft hit him a return catch and Sam Billings was bowled. But crucially, they strangled young gun Konstas from the strike.

The 19-year-old faced just three of the 28 balls before he was dismissed trying to pull Hardie for 21 off 19.

Needing more than 13 runs an over, the hosts lost their final five wickets for 27 runs. With a 1-4 record, their season is effectively over.