Battle of the sixes
Sir Garfield Sobers and Herschelle Gibbs have done it - and now so has Canterbury country cricketer Dee Taulani. Taulani, a Tongan international, achieved the batsman's ultimate dream of smashing six sixes in one over when his Oxford team beat Rangiora in Saturday's North Canterbury senior cricket match. Batting at No9 since his specialty is medium pace bowling, Taulani faced Fraser Hill, who had just bowled a wicket maiden and was sitting on 2-32 from six overs at Pearson Park. But his day was swiftly ruined when Taulani hit him six times in a row over the mid wicket boundary in the 39th over, in a spectacle which Oxford fans will remember for years. "Their bowler had been bowling well, but no matter where he bowled the ball, it went in the same place," said Oxford captain and club secretary David Fulton. No one playing in the match had ever seen or heard of the feat being achieved before, he said. But even the Rangiora fielders seemed impressed - "only the bowler did not appreciate it". Taulani, who has been playing for Oxford about three seasons, finished with 50 not out, while Fulton topscored with 52, "but mine took about 80 more balls", Fulton said.
Bro-mance
There's two ways you can view Martin Guptill's effusive praise for former skipper Ross Taylor after his stunning, match-winning century in game two of the T20 series won 2-1 by South Africa. It was either: 1. A rather sweet shout-out to an absent friend, or; 2. An awfully naive piece of socio-political manoeuvring. Guptill's squeeze is Laura McGoldrick, daughter of Leanne, who happens to be Taylor's manager. Understandable, perhaps, though the guys who have got his back while he's over there might have been forgiven for the odd raised eyebrow.
Talking turkey
