The Perth Scorchers, Western Australia’s Big Bash League cricket team, pulled off a hard fought, last ball triumph in this years T20 tournament final at Manuka Oval in Canberra last night.

The win sees the Scorchers take out consecutive Championships having won their first in last year’s contest at the WACA ground in Perth. The game was a roller coaster contest with both the Scorchers and their opponents, the Sydney Sixers, exchanging blows throughout. Retiring bowler Brett Lee almost won the game for the Sixers with two successive wickets in the last over before international Scorcher players Yasir Arafat(Pakistan) and Michael Carberry(England) secured a scrambled single off the last ball of the game after Sixers captain Moises Henriques fumbled the run out chance.

Man of the match Shaun Marsh proved his class with 73 runs off 59 balls to steer his team toward the impressive win before some nervous moments gave the Sixers a last minute chance of stealing the title. “It is a fantastic thing to do to go back to back because it is such a hard thing to do” Marsh said after the game.

The final was the Scorchers fourth final in as many years in the fledgling competition and has brought plaudits for their coach and former Australian Test opener, Justin Langer. Both teams now also automatically qualify for the lucrative T20 Champions League which see the best T20 Cricket club franchises from around the world play off against each other.