Cricket's X-Man is playing with superpowers at the moment and the Hobart Hurricanes had no answers when he caused the collapse that ruined their visit to the Gabba on Sunday night.
Brisbane Heat pacer Xavier Bartlett was already the leading wicket-taker in the Big Bash League before his three wickets in nine balls left the Hurricanes reeling at 4-22.
It was full credit to the Hurricanes (9-116) that they turned the night into a final-ball thriller that went to the Heat (7-132) by one run after a rain-adjusted chase.
Hurricanes captain Nathan Ellis needed three off the final ball to win it but could only manage one as desperate partner Paddy Dooley was run out.
Weapon of surprise Nikhil Choudhary raised a six off the first ball of the final over when 13 runs were needed for an upset against the bowling of England's Paul Walter.
It was 'Tall Paul' who kept his nerve, making Choudhury (58 off 38 balls) soar with a hook to remove the dangerous man and drain the runs with his final deliveries.
Bartlett wins praise
Former Test man Brett Lee, as a commentator for Fox Sports, was full of praise for Bartlett's 3-30 and his 13 scalps in the BBL so far.
“The Heat chase the ball in bunches and everything seems to go together perfectly. Bartlett bowled the ball beautifully with excellent seam placement,” Lee said of the man of the match.
The Hurricanes bowled beautifully to limit the unbeaten Heat to 7-132 but it was a pitch full of swinging and swinging and they didn't do well against it themselves.
Bartlett hammered McCright (0) and Sam Hine (0) with successive balls in his opener with brilliant balls that bit into the seam.
With 14 points, they have already secured a place in the finals with two matches to go against the Perth Scorchers.
Key roles of the leader
Only Heat opener Colin Munro (56 off 47 balls) stayed on for any length of time. He showed urgency but really only exploded once when he fired 20 off spinner Nikhil Choudhary.
The lefty hoisted two engines over the fence from the shorter boundary and brutally dragged four more.
Monroe rated the heat total as a mild 20 points.
Riley's life
That's why pacer Riley Meredith was such a big white-ball hope when selected for one-day and T20 duty for Australia in 2021.
He bowled the ball fast and straight, in the mid-140kph range. Excellent deliveries were wiped out by the outside edge of Josh Brown, Nathan McSweeney and Sam Billings in a quality effort of 0-15 from four overs.
The Hurricanes' offensive weapon was at its best.
Rotary mill
Left-arm spinner Paddy Dooley is hugely popular with his windmill spin and nowhere more so than in Brisbane's pockets.
He may have been the Hurricanes player who drove Heat top scorer Colin Munro deep but his fan club exists deep within his hometown of Brisbane.
He had Wests mates, his old Brisbane Grammar teammates and his family in the crowd of 27,124 at the Gabba.
