Melbourne Uni vs Monash Uni T20 Varsity challenge round 1 recap

Pritesh prepares to put the final ball over the rope.

Photo: Team Monash Facebook.

In what was one of the most unexpected finishes to a T20 match in years, Monash University won its round 1 Varsity challenge matchup against Melbourne University by one run after hitting 16 to win off the final three balls.

A one run victory would usually have been a nail biter, but truthfully there wasn’t much time to think as Monash ended its innings with a flurry of boundaries that appeared to come out of nowhere.

After Melbourne posted a very competitive total of 189, it was always going to be tough for Team Monash to pull out a victory.

Towards the end of Monash’s innings and without many wickets in the sheds, things were looking so bleak that team Captain James Wiseman said “with about 3 or 4 overs to go we were out of it”.

Enter new recruit Pritesh Goyal. 

That'll be 6 thanks.

Photo: Team Monash Facebook.

With only 3 balls remaining the task was simple enough to understand but almost impossible to pull off.

16 runs from the 3 balls were required to win, a boundary a ball with at least two maximums.

The first of these final three deliveries was a full toss which Pritesh dispatched over the rope for 4 bits.

12 runs from 2 balls to win.

Pritesh then danced down the wicket and the bowler got it wrong, pitching his delivery too full and Pritesh made him pay, smacking it over the rope for 6.

6 runs from the final ball to win. 

The final ball was right in the hitting zone.

Photo: Team Monash Facebook.

The final ball was much like the previous delivery, too full and right in Pritesh’s hitting zone. The result was the same, another 6 and a truly incredible win for Team Monash off the back of clutch batting at the death.

“We were pretty shocked and over the moon. I’ve played a lot of cricket and never seen anything like that before,” Captain James Wiseman said.

“We were amazed.”

Congratulations to Pritesh on an amazing innings and to Team Monash cricket, good luck for the rest of the season, let’s hope that it’s more of the same. 

Written by: Joseph Arthur, Media Coordinator