Bopara pays tribute as ‘unbelievable’ Lynn obliterates Blast dream for Steelbacks
Ravi Bopara paid tribute to Chris Lynn after the Australian dashed Northants Steelbacks' hopes of Vitality Blast glory at Edgbaston on Saturday.
The former Northants opener returned to haunt his former club-mates as he hammered a brilliant 108 not out from 51 balls to power Hampshire Hawks to a six-wicket win with 14 balls to spare.
It was the first century to be score on Finals Day.
But a tight game was in the balance with four overs to go with Hawks needing 38 to win from 24 balls, but it was the 15th over of the 18-over contest that proved pivotal, with Lynn thrashing the first five balls delivered by Lloyd Pope for sixes into the Hollies Stand.
It was a brutal display of big hitting from the 35-year-old, who scored three Blast centuries during his two-year stint with the Steelbacks in 2022 and 2023, and Bopara admitted he and his team-mates simply had no answers.
"I thought we put a good total on the board," said Bopara. "That was a decent total on that wicket, which was slowing up a bit.
"We thought we had the game in the balance there, with about six overs to go - then obviously you have the one big over that loses you the game.
"I thought Lynny played unbelievable, when someone had a day out like that it's hard to stop them."
"It is a tough wicket to get going on, there's not a lot of pace in it.
"You do need a bit of power, which Lynny has got, and he showed it.
"That's why he's been so successful in T20 cricket throughout his career, because he's got the capability of clearing the ropes and taking the pitch out of the equation."
Lynn’s effort wasn’t enough to secure the silverware for his side though, as the Hawks went on to lose the final to Somerset, despite posting a whopping 194 for six – with Lynn only scoring 12.
Somerset made light work of the record-breaking chase, winning by sic wickets with an over to spare.