In What was an emotional day at the Adelaide oval, and a day that signalled the changing of the gaurd South Australia took on Indian Giants Karnataka...
The game signalled the LAST home game for South Australian Hero Darren Lehmann, as well as long serving Manager Brendon Goff. Lehmann who only 2 weeks ago shocked the world when he announced his retirement had an emotional farewell as record crowds flocked to the picturesque ground to farewell their champion..
Goff who has been at the helm since midway through Season 1, has been mainly responsible for taking the redbacks to the great heights they stand at today.
The day started perfectly for the home side as Lehmann won the toss and elected to bat 1st, however Andy Flower departed early for 3, But the talent of the Redbacks lineup again shone through as 4 of the next five batsman piled on the runs all passing 50, added to that a solid 40 from Vic Oliver, 24 from Scott Brant and a blistering 16 from 16 balls from Heath Axelby, However the highlight for the crowd was the Lehmann 50, the skipper recieving a huge ovation, one only matched by that of his departure from the ground...
SA racked up a solid 393, but little did they know what was ahead...
From the beginning of the Karnataka innings they didn't look settled, and something that has always troubled Indian teams raised its head again, as Kale was runnout for a 2nd ball duck. The dismissal was only the tip of the iceberg, as Stratton pushed his claims again for back to back player of the year awards with 4-42, whilst Dennet 1-27 and Snow 2-30 rattled Karnataka to see the Visitors all out for a modest 203...
The visitors day was shown through the dismissal of Howarth for 99..
Forced to follow, nobody would have predicted what would happen, Karnataka were again dismantled by Stratton as he took 5-24 to see Karnataka bowled out for a humiliating 128, and to the dissapointment of the home crowd, there was no chance to see Darren Lehmann bat again..
However a brilliant performance from the Redbacks again as they continued to show their dominance, and are starting to show signs that their is life after Lehmann...
Man of the Match was Rob Stratton, however the star of the show was without doubt Darren Lehmann, as after the game both he and Goff were chaired around the ground to say farewell to their fans...
South Australia have 2 games remaining however they will travel to yorkshire for 2 weeks as they play the English side in the final 2 games of the season..