Thornton takes career-best 7 for 39 for Australia A after late call-up

Australia A 243 (McDermott 70, O’Rourke 4-29) beat New Zealand A 135 (Seifert 44, Thornton 7-39) by 108 runs

The 26-year-old was a good distance down the checklist of Australia A quick-bowling candidates when the preliminary squad was chosen having performed simply 16 List A video games for Victoria and South Australia. But an unprecedented spate of accidents throughout the Australia ODI squad and Australia A squads meant Thornton was flown to Brisbane on Monday, simply hours after he bought the decision from the selectors, forward of Wednesday’s second unofficial ODI as Liam Hatcher’s alternative after he was dominated out with foot soreness. Ben Dwarshuis, Wes Agar and Mark Steketee had already been dominated out from the preliminary squad.

“I’m kind of speechless at the moment,” Thornton stated. “It was pretty cool. My dad was up here in the crowd and he was going absolutely ballistic.

“He stated you may not get many possibilities to play for Australia A once more so I’d higher come up and watch. He was going completely nuts.”

New Zealand A were cruising at 0 for 46 in the seventh over when Thornton was introduced and he took three wickets in the over. Tim Seifert drilled a catch to cover to start the rot. Thornton then nipped one back through Dean Foxcroft’s gate before claiming Tom Bruce first ball with another that decked back and caught the inside edge through to keeper Josh Philippe.

Thornton didn’t even know he was on a hat-trick next over when he delivered a bouncer but New Zealand A’s run-rate completely stalled. Opener Nick Kelly, who had blazed 30 off his first 20 balls scored just 14 from his next 35 before slicing Thornton to backward point.

Two overs later he was on a hat-trick again as the visitors slumped to 6 for 74. Thornton bowled out his 10 overs straight, including a maiden, claiming his seventh wicket for the innings in the 24th over. New Zealand A’s tail folded with Matthew Kuhnemann and Ashton Turner picking up the last three between them.

“It’s fairly loopy,” Thornton said. “I assumed if we bowled sufficient balls in the best space, there’d be sufficient there. I simply tried to hit the highest of the stumps and bought fairly fortunate to be trustworthy. They’re fairly good gamers. I used to be simply truthfully stoked to get the call-up for the final two video games up right here. And it has been an incredible couple of days with the boys.

“If you look at the guys in the room. It’s a pretty special team and for me to just be involved and a part of it … I said this when I was playing BBL and took that 5 for 3, two years ago I was just running around playing grade cricket. So any game that I get to play is an absolute bonus. And it’s a privilege to play with the guys in this room.”

Thornton was considered one of solely 4 gamers within the Australia A XI who have not performed worldwide cricket. McDermott supplied some worldwide customary ball placing on his strategy to a blistering 70 earlier within the day. He thumped 4 fours and 6 sixes in his 59-ball keep. He was savage on something again of a size, clubbing all of his sixes over deep midwicket and broad long-on, together with one onto the roof of the Stuart Law stand and a number of other out of the bottom earlier than he miscued considered one of Foxcroft.

But after dropping the 2 four-day matches, Australia A claimed the 50-over sequence 2-0 forward of the ultimate sport on Friday.