Tasmania has opened its One Day Cup campaign in sizzling fashion, routing Western Australia by nine wickets at the WACA and securing a bonus point in the process.
Despite some wayward bowling – the Tigers sent down 19 wides and overstepped three other times in just 30.2 overs – the Warriors were skittled for 115, thanks largely to spearhead Riley Meredith and all-rounder Beau Webster.
Meredith took 4-11 from eight overs while Webster chimed in with 3-31 as the visitors took full advantage of some loose batting from the hosts.
Will Prestwidge (2-19) was the other multiple wicket-taker, with no Warrior passing 20.
After failing to take the field following a warm-up mishap which left him with a split finger requiring stitches, Mitch Owen showed few signs of discomfort with the bat, blasting 43 from 29 balls to turbocharge the run chase.
Owen and Caleb Jewell (41 not out from 43) raced to 76 inside nine overs before Owen skied a Brody Couch delivery to Cameron Bancroft, but Webster (26 not out) picked up where he left off with the ball to steer the visitors home.
Webster finished the game in style, flicking Albert Esterhuysen over fine leg for six to bring up the winning runs.
“It was a great result in the end, a really comprehensive win to start the year which is always nice,” player of the match Meredith said.
“It probably wasn’t our best bowling performance to be fair, but it is a positive going forward in the next few games, to try and work on that and sharpen that.
“We might have got a couple of lucky ones [wickets], but that’s the game in the end… might not have been our best execution night but we got the wickets and got the result.
“Bit more of an inexperienced attack for us than we have had the last couple of years, so it was nice to be the spearhead of that and try and lead the boys.”
The Tigers handed a debut to left-arm quick Marcus Bean, who finished with 0-27 from his four overs.
The side now heads to South Australia for its second match of the season on Wednesday.