Foster is over the moon after hitting the winning runs

Image courtesy of: Zimbio

Virgo Super Kings wickekeeper-batsman James Foster struck a boundary off the last ball of the match to lead his side to a thrilling four-wicket win over the Leo Lions.

Lions captain Brian Lara would have been mulling over his decision to bat first as James Franklin was the only batsman to make a decent contribution, scoring an unbeaten 44 off 33 balls, which included two boundaries and two sixes.

With Johan Botha making 27 and Scott Styris and Heath Streak scoring 21 runs apiece, the Lions finished on 146/7 off their 20 overs.

Murali Kartik was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets, while Azhar Mahmood snapped up two and Malinga Bandara and Gareth Batty chipped in with one wicket apiece.

Chasing 147 to win, the Super Kings struggled to keep up with the required run rate as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. However, that all changed when Mahmood came to the crease as he blasted 48 off 28 balls, which included four boundaries and two sixes, to bring the Super Kings back in contention.

However, despite Mahmood’s efforts, the Super Kings still required 15 runs to win off the last over. Foster and Brett Lee managed to add seven runs to the score off the first four balls before Foster hammered a six off the penultimate ball to leave the Super Kings within touching distance of victory. Needing two runs to win off the last ball, Foster became the hero of the match as he walloped a boundary to carry his side across the finish line in nail-biting circumstances.

Foster ended up finishing on 23 not out, which came off 11 balls and included two boundaries and a six.

Kyle Jarvis and Robin Peterson took two wickets apiece, while Streak and Botha claimed one wicket each.

Mahmood edged out Foster for the Man of the Match award.