Marcus Stoinis slammed the fastest fifty by an Australian in T20Is.
Chasing 158 to win, the hosts were on 89/3 after 12.2 overs when Stoinis arrived in the middle. The all-rounder took the Sri Lankan attack to the cleaners from the outset, slamming his half-century in just 17 balls – the fastest by an Australian in the shortest format.
Stoinis made a mockery of Sri Lankan bowlers, especially the spin duo of Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana. He eventually returned with 59 not out off 18 balls as the defending champions overhauled the target in just 16.3 overs.
WATCH - Stoinis smashes fastest T20I fifty for Australia; Cricket fraternity reacts in awe
After his match-winning knock, Stoinis credited the Indian Premier League for the transformation in his batting against spin.
“Yeah, definitely the IPL has changed my cricket and helped me evolve, and it’s not only playing on the wickets, it’s having the coaches from all over the world, having players from different countries,” Stoinis said after the win against Sri Lanka.
“I’ve played for quite a few years in the IPL and quite a few teams, so you come across a range of techniques and mentalities about how to play spin. Yeah, it has helped me improve for sure.
“But yeah, so I’m looking for two balls really, one off the back foot and one off the front foot, just to at least have an option to each,” he added.
“You sort of then go from there. You’re trying to get the field that you want, which is sometimes why you want to play a lap or reverse or a sweep shot, which I’m working on sort of thing.”
Marcus Stoinis might have created a new record of fastest by an Australia in T20Is, but the all-rounder confessed that he was actually nervous while walking out to bat.
“I was actually quite nervous, to be honest, so yeah, the intention was just to go put an impact on the game and probably provide a bit of energy for the boys and try and get a spark going.”
Stoinis’ knock didn’t only put Australia’s campaign back on track, but also helped in boosting their net run rate, which took a beating in the loss against New Zealand.
Further talking about his knock, the 33-year-old said it was not pre-planned.
“Not really. It was just batting and looking at a score and then maybe towards the last couple of overs that I faced, I thought should I rein it in or should I keep going, but it’s probably just the time; you just keep going. If you hit one and get caught on the boundary, it’s part of the game.”
Stoinis didn’t agree that the reigning champions were a bit flat in their bowling department against Sri Lanka.
“I don’t think we felt flat, to be honest. I think it felt like we bowled pretty well. I felt like we bowled well in the powerplay. There were a few balls up in the air that fell in gaps and that sort of stuff. I think we’re pretty happy with how we bowled,” he said.
(With PTI inputs)