Broom's blistering century propels Otago to big win

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Jaipur: Opener Neil Broom produced a hurricane 117-run knock off just 56 balls as Otago Volts recorded a comprehensive 62-run win over Perth Scorchers in the Champions League Twenty20 tournament, here today.Riding on Broom's blistering ton, the Kiwi side posted the highest-ever total in the tournament history as they reached mammoth 242 for four after being put into bat.Apart from Broom's breathtaking unbeaten knock, Ryan ten Doeschate tormented the Scorchers bowler with his fiery 26-ball 66.Broom and ten Doeschate rattled up a stunning 128-run partnership for the fourth wicket in just eight overs as they plundered 24 boundaries, including 10 sixes, between them.The Australian side put up a brave fight but all they could manage was 180 for six, built around Hilton Cartwright's unbeaten 73 and some superb batting by the lower-order.Scorchers were in trouble right from first over when Ian Butler struck twice. Skipper Simon Katich was run out and the Australians were gasping at 11 for three in the second over.Adam Voges (36), Ashton Turner (23) and Tom Triffitt (25) resisted for a while but that only reduced the defeat margin.With this convincing win, Otago have extended their unbeaten streak to 14 matches, second only to Sialkot Stallions' incredible 25 wins on the trot.Broom butchered the Australian bowlers with his incredible knock as he hit nine fours and eight sixes.Such was the impact of the Broom's electrifying knock that Otago collected 94 runs in the last five overs.Only Australian batsman David Warner (135 and 123), who has two centuries two his credit in CLT20, is ahead of Broom in the Champions League. Broom's was only fifth hundred in CLT20.Broom reached 95 with a six off young paceman Joel Paris and reached the three-figure mark with another big shot as he hit three successive sixes in that over.Broom was dropped in the first ball of that Paris over, when he was on 87, and he made the Aussies pay quite heavily. Paris had given away just nine runs in his first two overs as he had rocked the Otago top-order by dismissing Hamish Rutherford and Brendon McCullum in successive balls in the third over but ended up giving away 41 runs the last two.It was not that Broom went boom boom from the word go. His side had lost skipper McCullum and Rutherford and they were 32 for two in six overs.Broom got good support from Derek de Boorder (45) with whom he raised a 67-runs to stabilise the innings. But what followed was incredible hitting from Broom and Ryan ten Doeschate, who smashed his way to a fiery 26-ball 66, laced with three fours and six sixes.Broom and ten Doeschate rattled up a stunning 128-run partnership for the fourth wicket in just eight overs.Jason Behrendorff broke the stand when he dismissed ten Doeschate in the 18th over but there was no stopping Broom.