The likes of Brian Lara and Brett Lee rolled back the years as the Bushfire Bash provided an opportunity for fans to witness a cricketing extravaganza at the Junction Oval in Melbourne on Sunday.
In what turned out to be a nail-biting encounter between two sides comprising former stars of the sport, Ponting XI edged out Gilchrist XI by one run. However, there was minimal tension both on and off the field as the cricketers had a gala time, both mesmerising the fans and reliving their time on the field over the years.
Brian Lara scored 30 off 11 balls including a sizzling inside-out boundary through covers, while Ricky Ponting scored 26 off 14 as the eventual victors had put up 104/5 in the stipulated 10 overs.
Both Ponting and Lara had retired, but as per norms of the game, they were taken into account as dismissals. Chasing the 105-run target, Shane Watson’s 30 off nine and Andrew Symonds’s 29 off 13 had nearly helped them scale the target but they eventually fell short.
After the match, which raised $7.7 million for the bushfire that ravaged Australia a few weeks back, the cricketers could be seen signing on each other’s jerseys. The match also gripped fans on social media who clearly had a walk down memory lane on Sunday.
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