Hodge puts on a show
Sat, 16 January 2010
Cometh the hour, cometh the man, and at the MCG on Friday night, that man was Brad Hodge. In the rooms after his thumping 90 from 56 deliveries that paved the way for Victoria's nine-wicket KFC Big Bash win over Tasmania, Hodge wasn't prepared to nominate his innings as the best of his Twenty20 career. But he knew precisely what it meant in terms of the big picture. It helped to put the Bushrangers through to Tuesday's Big Bash preliminary final against the winner of Saturday's clash at the Gabba between the Bulls and Warriors, and for that, he was stoked. "Today I came to the ground with high ambitions and when the stakes are high - let's be honest - the big names have got to step up to the plate," said Hodge. "Throughout my career I've done it and obviously today was something I had to step up and do." "It was nice to be able to put on a great show and a great partnership and get some runs." Hodge's opening stand of 147 with Aaron Finch, who finished with 58 from 39 balls faced, was a Twenty20 record for the Vics and the 43,125 who attended Friday night's match will be hoping for more of the same on Tuesday. A bit like the Bushrangers generally, Hodge hasn't been at his best over the past month or so, but believes there's good things in store. "It's been hard," he said. "Everyone has been in and out of form in the last five or six weeks and we just haven't hit our straps, but luckily we're hitting our straps at the right time." Asked if the Bushrangers could win the Big Bash title from third position, Hodge replied: "Yep, there's no reason why not." "I think if you were playing against us in a preliminary final you'd definitely be a little bit nervous." "We've got a very powerful side and if we have a good day like that then anything can happen." "(I would) probably (prefer to play) Queensland, because I'm not that interested in flying to Perth," he joked. "That's the only reason - I've run out of magazines, I've run out of DVDs." Hodge smiled broadly when quizzed about how the Bushrangers expect to fit Black Caps star batsman Ross Taylor into the side. Taylor, who's been prevented by his own domestic commitments from representing the Vics after top-scoring in his one and only outing against Queensland at the Gabba, is expected to be available for Tuesday's match. "He could fit anywhere," said Hodge. "He showed last time he's a great player." "That's something for the coaching staff to work out, I think."
Angus Morgan, Sportal
