Smith and Babar added 141 runs for the opening wicket.
Chasing 190 to win, the duo added 141 runs for the opening wicket. However, a moment of friction unfolded in the 11th over, leaving the former Pakistan skipper frustrated.
After playing three successive dot balls from Chris Green, Babar drove the final delivery to long-on and took off for an easy single. But, Smith -- standing at the non-striker's end -- firmly sent his partner back, opting not to take the run so he could retain strike for the next over.
The move paid off in a spectacular fashion as the Australian star made the most of 'Power Surge', taking Ryan Hadley to the cleaners by smashing four consecutive sixes and a four in a 32-run over.
While Babar was visibly unhappy to see his batting skills being undermined by the Australian, a new report published in Code Sports claimed that the tense scenes were witnessed after the game as well.
According to the report, Babar created dressing-room ruckus following the match, telling the rest of his teammates that he felt "disrespected" by Smith’s call.
After earning the Player-of-the-Match award, Smith addressed the no-single controversy, admitting that Babar was not “too happy" but his decision was purely tactical.
"We spoke at the ten-over mark, and they [the captain and coach] said take the surge straightaway," Smith told Channel 7. "I was like, 'Nah, give it one over. I want to hit to the short boundary. I don't want to screw up the first over. I'll try to get 30 off that over'. [I] think we got 32, so it was a good result."
"Not sure Babar was too happy with me knocking back that single," he added with a smile on his face.
The match-winning partnership was dominated by Steve Smith as Babar Azam fell for 47 in 39 balls with 7 fours.
Smith, on the other hand, went on to slam a 41-ball century, making 100 in 42 balls with the help of 5 fours and 9 sixes. This was the second-fastest century in BBL history, and he helped the Sixers win the game by 5 wickets in 17.2 overs.