From being rolled for a world record-low 15 to scraping into the BBL finals, Sydney Thunder’s Jason Sangha concedes his team’s season has been a “rollercoaster”.
The official captain has himself endured a tough road to Friday’s knockout final against the Brisbane Heat, with a collarbone injury forcing him to miss most of the season.
Sangha even abdicated the captaincy to Chris Green on his return against the Stars on Wednesday as the Thunder sealed their spot in the playoffs with a last-gasp win chasing a low total at the MCG.
But even though they now have to take the “longer road” to winning the BBL title, which means winning four games on the bounce, Sangha is happy enough to say they have a chance.
He says the Thunder, who were dismissed for the lowest score in any T20 competition in the world, ever, when five players made ducks in a team total of 15 in an unforgettable horror show last December against the Adelaide Strikers, had started finding ways to win.
And winning in finals is all that matters, with a home game at the Sydney Showgrounds an extra weapon in their arsenal.
“The most important thing is winning becomes a habit and we’ve got one from one now,” Sangha said.
“Today was almost like a little curtain raiser for our finals – if we lost tonight, we would’ve been out. So I guess tonight, in a way, was a nice practice for what’s going to be the big dance in a couple of days.
“Obviously it’s a trickier way of doing it (winning the title), but you just win a couple of key moments during the games and you can go on and win the final.
“It might be a little bit of a longer road, but it would be nice to keep building that momentum.
“I can’t wait. It’s been a long time since western Sydney has had a home ground final – obviously we had a couple of years in the (Covid) bubble.”
David Warner, who flew home early on Thursday morning, is locked in to play for the Thunder on Friday and Sunday should they progress, before he joins the Test squad for the tour of India.
But the Thunder will most likely have to topple the Heat without strike bowler Gurinder Sandhu, who suffered a calf injury which Sangha said “didn’t look good”.
But that’s just another obstacle in a season full of them for the Thunder and one man down won’t be the end of their title tilt.
“Looking back at our season, it has been a bit of a rollercoaster,” Sangha said.
“The one good thing is we’ve managed to find a way in those tight situations, we’re just finding ways to win.
“In the finals series, all you need is a couple of things to go your way.
“For us going forward, it’s just recognising those key moments in a game.”
The winner of Friday’s match will go on to play the Melbourne Renegades on Sunday.