Hampshire denied victory by 'great last ball'

Carlos Brathwaite celebrates victory for Lahore Qalandars

James Fuller admitted Carlos Brathwaite produced the perfect delivery with the final ball of the match to stop Hampshire Hawks pulling off an incredible victory over Lahore Qalandars in the Global Super League (GSL) in Guyana.

Needing 18 off the last three balls, Fuller blasted the first two for six to leave Hampshire needing just one more maximum to win their second game of the tournament.

However, Brathwaite, who famously won the T20 World Cup for West Indies in similar circumstances, held his nerve to land a yorker which Fuller dug out to run just a single.

"That last ball was a great ball," Fuller told BBC Radio Solent. "As soon as it was coming down I knew it was a yorker and there was not much you could really do with that.

"You have to take your hat off, it was a great ball after two sixes, under the pump and with the game on the line."

Brathwaite famously smashed Ben Stokes for four consecutive sixes to stun England and win the T20 World Cup for West Indies in Kolkata in 2016.

Needing 19 from the final over the West Indies all-rounder lifted Stokes's first four balls over the ropes to secure the win.

Both teams found scoring difficult on a low, slow pitch.

Pakistan Super League side Qalandars set what seemed a modest total at the end of their 20 overs, Luke Wells and Muhammad Akhlaq boosting the score by 44 in 23 balls at the death to climb to 135-5.

Yet Hampshire never really grabbed control of the chase for all that Fuller took them to within one hit of victory as they finished four runs short on 131-8.

Hampshire, who now have one win and one defeat from their first two games, have a chance to regain the winning habit when they tackle tournament hosts Guyana Amazon Warriors back at Providence on Sunday.

Fuller insisted qualification for the final –  with the top two in the five-team league table meeting on 7 December – remains within their own control.

"Absolutely it is still on," he said. "We hopefully win the next two and we are looking forward to a bit of atmosphere and another night game [against Guyana] which will be nice.

"We have had one try out and we know what the conditions are going to be. We just have to be smart with that and learn."