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Bushfire Cricket Bash: Lara and Tendulkar roll back the years as relief fundraiser brings in millions

Ricky Ponting's team got the better of an Adam Gilchrist XI in Melbourne's Bushfire Cricket Bash, as the match raised millions for charity.

By John Skilbeck
Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara - cropped

Melbourne, Feb 9: Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara rolled back the years as Cricket Australia raised over 7.7 million Australian dollars (£3.9million) in the fundraising Bushfire Cricket Bash on Sunday.

At Melbourne's Junction Oval, a Ricky Ponting XI beat an Adam Gilchrist XI by one run, with superstar line-ups turning out in support of the relief effort.

Former Australia captain Ponting made 26 from 14 balls and West Indies great Lara plundered 30 in the 10-overs-a-side match, as the Ponting XI made 104-5 from their allocation.

Sachin Tendulkar comes out of retirement, hits first ball for a boundarySachin Tendulkar comes out of retirement, hits first ball for a boundary

In the reply, Gilchrist scored 17 before he was bowled by former Australian rules star Luke Hodge, before Shane Watson cracked three sixes in a nine-ball 30 and Andrew Symonds added 29.

Ponting, Lara, Watson and Symonds all retired to give others a chance to shine in the charity contest, which saw bowlers including Peter Siddle, Courtney Walsh, Wasim Akram and Dan Christian come in for some uncharitable treatment from batsmen.

Lara shines as Ponting XI edge Glichrist XI in the Bushfire BashLara shines as Ponting XI edge Glichrist XI in the Bushfire Bash

Brett Lee's 2-11 from two overs bucked the trend, as the former Baggy Green paceman took the wickets of Gilchrist XI stars Brad Hodge and Yuvraj Singh.

Tendulkar, who was named coach of the Ponting XI, made a crowd-pleasing cameo between innings when he faced an over shared by Ellyse Perry and Annabel Sutherland.

The Gilchrist XI then needed five from the final ball of their 10 overs, but ex-Aussie rules footballer Nick Riewoldt, attempting to club a six, could only scramble a three to leave his team just short on 103-6.

Cricket Australia centred the match around its Big Appeal campaign, with television coverage taking the match to a large audience, and its fundraising was boosted by an online auction.

At least 33 people died in Australia's bushfire crisis, with wildlife taking the brunt and homes and large areas of land being destroyed.

Story first published: Sunday, February 9, 2020, 19:45 [IST]
Other articles published on Feb 9, 2020