The KFC T20 Max has got away to a flying start, with centuries in the men's and women's competitions, including some remarkable hitting from Sandgate-Redcliffe's Jake Winter to close out the opening round last night.
Winter Is Coming
Batting first, Winter and the Sandgate-Redcliffe line-up took advantage of the short boundary side towards the Ray Lindwall Oval to power to 7-220 against Toombul.
As he did recently in the Northern Territory Strike League for the Adelaide Strikers development side, Winter was ruthless on the way to 139 from 64 balls. His 11 sixes included six in an over against experienced paceman Ronan McDonald.
The Gators won the clash comfortably, and a full wrap-up of the big winners from the opening rounds wll be posted shortly.
So who is Jake Winter? QC intern Sammar Shaheen runs the rule over the clean-hitting right-hander.
The 27-year-old has made a name for himself as a destructive hard hitting opening batter.
Winter’s consistent performances as a youngster playing for Glenelg District Cricket Club in Adelaide led to a National U-17s Championship call-up in January 2014 for South Australia. This proved to be a momentous success for Winter, as his performance helped him win the Player of the Tournament Award, with 389 runs at an average of 77.80.
A run of good performances continued for him over the next couple of seasons, including the award for SACA Premier Grade's Rising Star Award, the Jason Gillespie Medal.
His first-class debut for the Cricket Australia XI at the age of 19 was a reflection of his abilities, catching the ete against a formidable Pakistani bowling line. On a slow wicket he top-scored for the Cricket Australia XI, leading a game-high partnership of 57 runs with Matthew Short.
Recently he became the centre of attention after a Player of the match performance against Pakistan A last month. The Top End T20 series in Darwin saw Winter’s ferocious innings of 104 at a strike rate of 170.49 for the Adelaide Strikers, which included eight gigantic sixes. Five out of total Eight sixes came in one over off the left-arm wrist spinner Faisal Akram, leaving spectators chanting his name.
This is not the first time Winter has picked bones out of the opposition’s bowling. In a T20 Max game against Western Suburbs last year, Winter smashed an unbeaten 133* at a strike rate of 250.94 including 16 sixes.
T20 cricket has evolved into a strike-rate driven format and Winter has proved that he is not far off from the likes of Josh Brown and Jake Fraser-McGurk.
Sandgate- Redcliffe Cricket Club will have their ambitions and hopes high for the upcoming KFC T20 Max, considering Jake Winter’s recent form in Darwin, where he has shown a glimpse of his hard-hitting abilities and the potential to take down any opposition on the day. Winter’s role as a top order batter can set the tone for Sandgate-Redcliffe Cricket Club and bring opposition bowlers under pressure early in the game.