Mitch Owen's explosive 39-ball century propelled the Hobart Hurricanes to their first Big Bash League (BBL) title, defeating the Sydney Thunder in a thrilling final. Owen's innings, which included 11 sixes and 6 fours, matched the fastest-ever Big Bash century, leaving commentators awestruck and drawing comparisons to cricketing legends.
Mitch Owen was surrounded by young supporters at Tuesday's Hurricanes Fan Day at Kangaroo Bay. Mitch Owen's breakout Big Bash season, and match-winning final performance, has made him one of the stars of Australian cricket. What's next? The 39-ball 100 has stopped the cricketing world, and has him tipped to receive contract offers from overseas. Proof that childhood sporting dreams can come true can be found in the Ricky Ponting stand at Bellerive oval.
A banner-sized image of George Bailey celebrating after hitting the winning runs in the 2014/15 BBL4 season against Brisbane Heat is featured prominently on a wall. Mitchell Owen has equalled the fastest-ever Big Bash century to lift the Hobart Hurricanes to the BBL title. Fast forward 10 years, and Owen was the one sending the Bellerive Oval crowd into a frenzy. His extraordinary 39-ball 100 in Monday's final was the equal-fastest Big Bash ton ever — matching the mark set in 2014 by Perth Scorchers' Chris Simmons. He clubbed 11 sixes and 6 fours on his way to 108 runs off 42 balls, leading the charge as Hobart chased down 183 to win the Big Bash League (BBL) for the first time. Ecstatic fans during the Big Bash League final match between the Hobart Hurricanes and Sydney Thunder. 'I got off to a nice start, and then the crowd was chanting my name … I thought I'd better keep going, or I might embarrass myself.' His innings in the final, and the Player of the Match award, capped off a breakout season for him. His heroic knock was his second century of the season — scoring 101 against the Perth Scorchers, also at Bellerive Oval. His move to the top of the order has given Owen the chance to become one of the competition's most destructive hitters. Prior to BBL14, he'd played just 13 games across four seasons — mostly as a middle-order batter, and had just 79 runs under his belt. 'I started opening for the Tassie one-day stuff. I got that backing early, and was able to work on my game and be ready for this tournament,' he said. Teammate and Hurricanes captain Nathan Ellis said Owen's strength and talent came as no surprise, but he was taken aback by how dominant he had been. 'You could go to the top of the order and could easily be overawed, but you didn't see that at all this year,' Ellis said. Ellis said the next challenge for Owen would be returning as a known quantity, and dealing with prepared opponents. 'Which is just something he'll learn to deal with going forward — but at the moment, he's reaping the rewards of some hard work over the past few years, and it's exciting,' Ellis said. Former Australian cricket coach and ABC sport commentator Darren Lehmann said he hadn't seen a player destroy a bowling attack like Owen did in a long time — drawing comparisons to all-time greats. An inspired Mitchell Owen produces the equal-fastest ever Big Bash century to lift the Hobart Hurricanes a maiden BBL title with victory over the Sydney Thunder. 'It was Viv Richards-esque … I've seen Warner do it, I've seen Hayden do it, I've seen Gilchrist do it, and they've done it on the international stage.''He's got a lot of the middle. He's got great reach, he's tall, he's fit, he's a good fielder, and bowls a decent ball.' The performance made worldwide headlines, with the BBC writing of an onslaught … while renowned cricket publication Wisden called him a 'sensation'. The powerful knock is also sure to have piqued the interest of scouts from the lucrative big-money T20 leagues across the world. 'It's life-changing. Performances like that in big games and people stand up and notice.'If that stuff comes, it comes. But we've got a Tassie season to finish off the next couple of months, so focus on that after we let this sink in,' he said.
CRICKET BIG BASH LEAGUE HOBART HURRICANES SYDNEY THUNDER MITCHELL OWEN CENTURY T20 PLAYER OF THE MATCH
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