Aaron Finch kicked in a captain’s shot to seal a place in the final for the Renegades after Fawad Ahmed’s heroics with the ball to knock the Strikers out of the competition.
The Melbourne Renegades went 4-143 from 18.2 overs in response to the Adelaide Strikers 7-142 at Marvel Stadium, with Finch leading with 63 not eliminated and Ahmed taking 3-17 with the ball.
MATCH CENTRE: Renegades vs Strikers teams, scoreboard, videos, updates
Look at BBL12. Every game live and commercial-free while playing on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Smith flies to India late to play BBL | 00:33
The Strikers went 7-142 on 20 overs after being dispatched by the Renegades at Marvel Stadium, with Alex Carey (65) the only batter to go over 20.
Matt Short was caught and played for a third ball duck, giving Tom Rogers his 21st BBL12 wicket in a horror start for the Strikers.
The Strikers’ 1-15 in their first four overs was the lowest surge ever by an Adelaide team.
Travis Head had 21 points in his 19 of 32, before being caught on the rope by Will Sutherland off Ahmed.
Adam Hose broke a huge six, but was caught by Sutherland off Corey Rocchiccioli next ball for 11 on seven ball.
Colin de Grandhomme came and went for 8, caught by Jono Wells to give Ahmed his second scalp.
Ryan Gibson could only handle 7, before becoming Ahmed’s third victim, caught by Tom Rogers.
Ahmed finished with numbers of 3-17 from four overs with 18 balls in the game for the Renegades.
Alex Carey held the innings with 65 of 47 balls, including nine fours and a six, before being caught at the rope by Wells off Kane Richardson.
Cameron Boyce was run down for 1 by Wells to have the Strikers struggling at 7-118 in a controversial decision, with bowler Kane Richardson appearing to dislodge the sureties first with his hands.
Harry Nielsen (18) and Wes Agar (5) were unbeaten at the end to push the goal to 143 for the Renegades victory.
In response, the Renegades got off to a bad start with Martin Guptill smashing a towering six, before being caught by Adam Hose through the depths of Matt Short for 8 in the opening over.
Sam Harper looked like he was caught for a duck to the next ball, but when reviewing the batsman, the call was overturned.
The Renegades were then awarded a free kick, after the Strikers had too many outfielders on the leg side as the first over went for 13 runs.
“It’s absolute chaos,” Glenn Maxwell said on Fox Cricket.
Shaun Marsh was out for a second ball duck, caught by Ryan Gibson wide of Wes Agar.
Finch in his 100th game was nearly thrown, but the ball failed to dislodge the stumps in a fluke that proved vital to the result.
The Strikers then failed with a review for lbw, with Finch surviving another scare in a frantic first two overs.
Peter Siddle trapped Sam Harper lbw for 1, after a failed Renegades review to wobble the hosts at 3-16.
Matthew Critchley smashed two fours and two sixes in his 35 from 29 balls, before going in with a pointless two on the arm of Cameron Boyce in deep.
“It’s a very bad run between the wickets,” Maxwell said.
“He went blind, slipped and still said yes. It’s ignoring some of the basics going all the way to danger.
However, Finch held the home side together as he smashed six fours and two towering sixes in his 54-ball run to bring the Renegades home with 10 to spare.
Jonathan Wells contributed with 20 unstripped as the Renegades went home with a wide to end the game at the end of the Strikers’ season, while Melbourne lives to fight another day.
MATCH OVERVIEW
The Melbourne Renegades host the Adelaide Strikers in a crucial clash at Marvel Stadium.
The Renegades have won the bat flip and will play first.
The fourth-seeded Renegades are on 12 points and can cement a place in the Finals with a win, while the six-seeded Strikers are on 10 points and must win and let other results follow their way to qualify.
The Renegades are coming off a narrow loss to the Scorchers, while the Strikers were dominated by Perth in their last start.
Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh will be crucial with the bat for the Renegades, while Kane Richardson and Tom Rogers have been in good form with the ball.
For the Strikers, Travis Head and Matt Short will lead the charge at the top of the order, while Peter Siddle and Wes Agar are the dangerous men with the ball.
This sets the stage for a must see matchup for both teams in their final game of the regular season.
TEAMS
Renegades XI: Renegades XI: Shaun Marsh, Martin Guptill, Sam Harper (wk), Aaron Finch (c), Matt Critchley, Jon Wells, Will Sutherland, Tom Rogers, Corey Rocchiccioli, Kane Richardson, Fawad Ahmed
Forwards XI: Strikers XI: Travis Head (c), Matt Short, Alex Carey (wk), Adam Hose, Colin de Grandhomme, Ryan Gibson, Harry Nielsen, Cameron Boyce, Wes Agar, Harry Conway, Peter Siddle
Get all the latest cricket news, highlights and analysis straight to your inbox with Fox Sports Sportmail. Register now!!!
RELIVE THE ACTION IN OUR BLOG BELOW. DO NOT YOU SEE IT ? CLICK HERE.
