Australia 1-Day 2024/25, VIC vs TAS 2nd Match Report, September 23, 2024

Victoria 128 for 6 (Harper 43, Sutherland 36* Webster 3-20) bat Tasmania 126 (Elliott 7-12) by four wickets

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Elliott said. “It was one of those days when everything clicked, it felt so good.

“[They are my] Best math ever [at any level]. It was a great day to do it – the first one-day cup match of the year.”

“I think [Dad] I might have mixed those up,” Elliott said. “I went to Darwin [in the winter] working on my beat.

“It was very nice to finally have a little relationship with Chief [Sutherland]. It was nice to go out with a little pressure and do that.”

Tasmania were under pressure from the start before Elliott struck. Sent into bat in good bowling condition, they lost Mitch Owen and Caleb Jewell in the first eight overs to leave the visitors 31 for 2. his extra bounce and late seam movement. He hit Jordan Silk with his first ball and caught Jake Weatherald behind in the same over after the left-hander raced to 31 from 31 with six boundaries. Four of Elliott’s seven victims were caught from behind and the other three went outside the ring trying to beat him at his constant height.

At one point he had figures of 7 for 8 with two maidens as Tasmania slumped to 92 for 9 when Brad Hope fell. He conceded five singles in his last two overs before Sutherland gave him a breather.

Elliott revealed that he made changes to his release during warmups.

“I actually changed something early in the game with my wrist,” Elliott said. “It wasn’t the same but it felt like the good balls were really good. I think the most exciting thing is that maybe I can get back to training and work on a few things that are consistent. It’s good to have a result at the moment.”

He also revealed that he had worked on increasing his speed during the pre-season with Victoria Bowling coach Adam Griffith, and was very strong in the gym to keep up with the games.

“In Darwin our pre-season thing I didn’t throw as well as I wanted to,” Elliott said. “Then we came back, we looked at the numbers, and we just decided that was going to be a real point leading into our pre-season games in Sydney. And we’re going in now.”

Tasmania’s last pair, Matthew Kuhnemann and Gabe Bell, scored 34 for the tenth wicket to at least ensure Victoria chased more than 120.

Harper’s ability to pounce on anything loose ensured the scoreboard kept moving, but by the time he fell the home side were deep in the mud before Sutherland and Elliott pulled them out.