Aaron Hardie and injured Fanning guide Western Australia home
Aaron Hardie and limping opener Fanning steered Western Australia to a two-wicket win chasing 201.
Aaron Hardie stayed unbeaten on 80 while Fanning, the opener who had retired hurt with a hamstring injury, came back to score the last 14 runs. Together they found the winning runs when the target still looked distant and the lower order had been exposed.
Fanning returned at a moment when the innings was wobbling. Hardie had been building steadily, then stepped up as the asking rate rose, finishing with the match-winning knock that keeps Western Australia near the top of the Sheffield Shield table.
CricHubb Take
Hardie's innings came at a point where WA could have slipped out of the title race. Fanning's return, injured or not, shows how thin the squad is and how little margin for error remains with two rounds left.