Clark And Lee The Heroes As NSW Crowned Champions

Clark And Lee The Heroes As NSW Crowned Champions

Brett Lee, Twenty20 all-rounder?

©REUTERS/Rogan Ward (SOUTH AFRICA SPORT CRICKET) Picture Supplied by Action Images

New South Wales 159-9 (Lee 48, Rampaul 3-20) beat
Trinidad & Tobago 118 (Pollard 26, Clark 3-21) by 41 runs
Airtel Champions League Twenty20 Final, Hyderabad

Brett Lee starred with bat and ball before Stuart Clark applied the finishing touches as New South Wales were crowned the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 winners courtesy of a 41-run win over Trinidad & Tobago in Hyderabad.

Lee rescued his side with an innings of 48 in 31 balls that included five sixes and their score of 159 for nine proved beyond Trindiad & Tobago, who were then bowled out for 118, Lee taking two for ten and Clark three for 21 to seal a comprehensive victory in the end.

It came as little surprise that Trinidad & Tobago chose to bowl first and they had New South Wales in trouble at 47 for four, Dwayne Bravo excelling once again with ball in hand by having David Warner (19) caught by Dave Mohammed and Simon Katich caught by Adrian Barath for 16.

The Blues rebuilt, first with Stephen Smith hitting 33 in 26 balls and Lee's onslaught effectively took the game away from Trinidad & Tobago as he hit one four as well as the five maximums, racing past his previous best score in Twenty20 cricket of 43 before he was caught by William Perkins off Ravi Rampaul facing the last ball of the innings.

Rampaul actually returned the best figures of the day, three for 20, bowling Phillip Hughes (3) before returning to dismiss Daniel Smith as well as Lee while Bravo picked up two for 27.

Trinidad & Tobago were soon in trouble themselves when Lee got past the defences of Perkins, the opener bowled for a two-ball duck and Lee struck again to have Lendl Simmons caught and bowled for four.

Barath made 14 and Daren Ganga 17 as they tried to hit back, but wickets continued to tumble, Bravo going for 17 and then Denesh ramdin for 16, the first of Clark's three wickets.

Kieron Pollard blasted three sixes in making 26 in 15 balls but there was to be no repeat of his heroics earlier in the tournament when the two sides met, Nathan Hauritz ending his innings before Clark cleaned up by having Navin Stewart (4) caught by Moises Henriques and Mohammed caught by Hughes for one to bring about the end of Trinidad & Tobago's innings in 15.5 overs.

© Cricket World 2009

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