Melbourne Stars record-breaker Sam Harper realised it was time for him to pull his finger out and not just lean on big-name teammates, before his remarkable Boxing Day BBL century.
Harper produced one of the most dominant displays in BBL history on Friday night, accounting for more than 75 per cent of the Stars' runs as they beat the Sixers.
Chasing 145 for victory at the SCG, Harper's maiden Big Bash hundred came in the form of a 50-ball century before he finished with an unbeaten 110 from 60 balls.
The Victorian's proportion of runs marked the highest in BBL history, and the first time any player had accounted for more than 70 per cent of his team's total.
After not scoring a half-century in the past two seasons, Harper now has scores of 55 and 110no to help the Stars go undefeated through the first three rounds.
Speaking afterwards, the 29-year-old quipped that usually 75 per cent of the Stars' runs came from Glenn Maxwell or Marcus Stoinis, but he knew he had to step up.
"Credit to the Stars for sticking by people like me the past few years," Harper said.
"It feels like we've got eight batters now who are ready to contribute. Not just Glenn and Marcus. That is huge for us going forward.
"They are going to have their nights, and how good is that going to be when they do have their nights.
"But it's up to us other six on the other nights to make sure we're pulling our weight. I want to win games for the Melbourne Stars myself.
"I love watching them win games, but it's time for us to pull our finger out as well."
Harper made use of the SCG's shorter boundary on Friday night, pulling Kane Richardson for two sixes and cover-driving him for another when he swapped ends.
In all he hit 41 runs off the former Australia white-ball seamer, before also taking to Jack Edwards with another two sixes.
Notable, though, was the fact they all came through conventional cricket shots, standing and delivering with brute force and good timing.
By his own admission, Harper labelled last season as "frantic and a bit chaotic", prompting some introspection on his T20 batting over the off-season.
"I know I can stand still and hit the ball around the ground," Harper said.
"I had a big focus on doing a lot of work in the winter on my T20 game. Not too many ramps of scoops, or reckless running down the wicket.
"I feel like I put a lot of pressure on the bowler when I am standing dead still and accessing all parts of the ground."
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