Last Update on: November 14th, 2021 at 04:30 pm
Former Australian spin bowler Brad Hogg said that Matthew Wade’s heroics against Pakistan in the semi-final was a very rare case.
Australia defeated Pakistan by five wickets in the semis to reach their second T20 World Cup final.
Matthew Wade-Marcus Stoinis take Australia to T20 WC final
Australia were reduced to 96/5 at one stage while they were chasing 177, thanks to leg-spinner Shadab Khan’s classic bowling with the figures of 4/26 from his four overs.
It was Wade and all-rounder Marcus Stoinis who scripted a marvellous chase with their uneaten partnership of 81 to enter the final.
After the 17th over, Wade shifted his gears and smoked one big shot to Hasan Ali over long-on for a six, then flicked a boundary on the final ball of the 18th over.
Matthew Wade had a little bit of luck: Brad Hogg
Wade was dropped by Hasan Ali just before he hammered three consecutive sixes to Pakistan’s best bowler Shaheen Afridi to wrap the match in the penultimate over itself.
Hogg said that Wade could not get a big IPL contract because of his lack of consistency and pointed that the player had a bit of luck.
“Because of his (lack of) consistency, he wouldn’t be my front line selection. What he did last night (in the semi-finals against Pakistan) was a one-off scenario. He had a little bit of luck. Would you, after that performance go and pick him in an IPL auction?
“No, you wouldn’t. You’d go through the stats and see how he performs over the next couple of months in similar roles. You don’t want to make that mistake,” Hogg said on his YouTube channel.
“Wade is a versatile cricketer. If he gets picked, he can bat at the top of the order. But, you’d mainly want to pick him to finish the innings because that’s what he has done most for Australia as well,” he added.
After the match, Wade said that it could have been his last opportunity to represent the Australian cricket team.
Also Read: ICC T20 World Cup 2021: Could Have Been My Last Opportunity To Represent Australia: Matthew Wade