Neser, Munro fire before rain ruins North Sydney clash

Rain has prevented a run chase for the Sydney Sixers after big-hitting cameos from Michael Neser and Colin Munro powered Brisbane Heat to 6-147 off 13 overs at North Sydney Oval.

Persistent drizzle before the game returned towards the end of the Heat’s innings and did not stop in time to allow play to resume, even with a further reduction in overs.

New Zealand import Munro had earlier wasted no time after the game started 65 minutes late, smashing 38 off 14 balls.

Munro monsters six sixes in rapid start

The big-hitting New Zealand left-hander belted six sixes in an explosive cameo, easily clearing the short boundaries of the ground as Brisbane bashed 29 off their two powerplay overs.

The Heat plundered seven sixes before hitting their first four, but their innings lost momentum with six wickets falling for 50 runs once Munro fell.

Neser (45no off 18) wrested back the initiative as rain fell again, hitting five fours and three sixes in a quickfire seventh-wicket stand of 56 with Nathan McSweeney (28no off 20).

Munro hit sixes off two of the first three balls of the innings (off the bowling of Ben Dwarshuis) and then smacked legside sixes off successive balls in overs from Sean Abbott and Steve O’Keefe (3-26 off three overs).

Veteran spinner O’Keefe, back after a hamstring injury, got Munro to glove a reverse sweep up to wicketkeeper Josh Philippe to bring his innings to an end.

Wickets then fell at regular intervals, with Englishman Sam Billings (16) falling to Hayden Kerr, and O’Keefe adding the scalps of Jimmy Peirson (1) and Josh Brown (6), the hero of last Sunday’s game between the two sides.

Each team takes a point from the first no-result of the competition.