Australia A 243 (McDermott 70, O’Rourke 4-29) beat New Zealand A 135 (Seifert 44, Thornton 7-39) by 108 runs
The 26-year-old was a great distance down the record of Australia A quick-bowling candidates when the preliminary squad was chosen having performed simply 16 Record A video games for Victoria and South Australia. However an unprecedented spate of accidents throughout the Australia ODI squad and Australia A squads meant Thornton was flown to Brisbane on Monday, simply hours after he acquired the decision from the selectors, forward of Wednesday’s second unofficial ODI as Liam Hatcher’s substitute after he was dominated out with foot soreness. Ben Dwarshuis, Wes Agar and Mark Steketee had already been dominated out from the preliminary squad.
“I am type of speechless in the meanwhile,” Thornton mentioned. “It was fairly cool. My dad was up right here within the crowd and he was going completely ballistic.
“He mentioned you may not get many possibilities to play for Australia A once more so I might higher come up and watch. He was going completely nuts.”
New Zealand A have been cruising at 0 for 46 within the seventh over when Thornton was launched and he took three wickets within the over. Tim Seifert drilled a catch to cowl to begin the rot. Thornton then nipped one again by way of Dean Foxcroft’s gate earlier than claiming Tom Bruce first ball with one other that decked again and caught the within edge by way of to keeper Josh Philippe.
Thornton did not even know he was on a hat-trick subsequent over when he delivered a bouncer however New Zealand A’s run-rate fully stalled. Opener Nick Kelly, who had blazed 30 off his first 20 balls scored simply 14 from his subsequent 35 earlier than slicing Thornton to backward level.
Two overs later he was on a hat-trick once more because the guests slumped to six for 74. Thornton bowled out his 10 overs straight, together with a maiden, claiming his seventh wicket for the innings within the twenty fourth over. New Zealand A’s tail folded with Matthew Kuhnemann and Ashton Turner choosing up the final three between them.
“It is fairly loopy,” Thornton mentioned. “I assumed if we bowled sufficient balls in the best space, there’d be sufficient there. I simply tried to hit the highest of the stumps and acquired fairly fortunate to be sincere. They’re fairly good gamers. I used to be simply actually stoked to get the call-up for the final two video games up right here. And it has been a terrific couple of days with the boys.
“When you take a look at the blokes within the room. It is a fairly particular crew and for me to simply be concerned and part of it … I mentioned this once I was enjoying BBL and took that 5 for 3, two years in the past I used to be simply operating round enjoying grade cricket. So any recreation that I get to play is an absolute bonus. And it is a privilege to play with the blokes on this room.”
Thornton was one in every of solely 4 gamers within the Australia A XI who have not performed worldwide cricket. McDermott supplied some worldwide normal ball putting on his option to a blistering 70 earlier within the day. He thumped 4 fours and 6 sixes in his 59-ball keep. He was savage on something again of a size, clubbing all of his sixes over deep midwicket and broad long-on, together with one onto the roof of the Stuart Legislation stand and a number of other out of the bottom earlier than he miscued one in every of Foxcroft.
However after dropping the 2 four-day matches, Australia A claimed the 50-over sequence 2-0 forward of the ultimate recreation on Friday.
Alex Malcolm is an Affiliate Editor at ESPNcricinfo
