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The Hobart Hurricanes remain in the running for the Big Bash League finals after a convincing win over the Sydney Thunder.
Hobart Hurricanes skipper Matthew Wade is hoping recent BBL history repeats when his side meet the Strikers in Adelaide in a crucial Australia Day match.
The Hurricanes kept their season alive with a convincing 57-run win over the Sydney Thunder on Friday night at Bellerive Oval.
Hobart pushed past the Thunder into fifth spot on net run rate but that position is far from locked in with five matches to be played across the long weekend.
To give themselves the best chance of finishing in the top five Hobart need a win at the Adelaide Oval, and also other results to fall their way.
They plan to call on good recent memories at the ground, with their trip to the city of churches last summer yielding a ten-wicket victory.
"It suits our line-up. We're quite good square of the wicket players," Wade said of the Adelaide pitch and conditions.
"We learned a lot from the final a couple of years ago and took that into last year's performance.
"They're a quality team, they've got their international players back as well.
"It won't be an easy task but at our best I think we can beat anyone."
All-rounder James Faulkner (calf) and D'Arcy Short (international duties) made their return for Hobart in the win over the Thunder.
Short got a second-ball duck but produced a career-best 5-21 with the ball as Sydney crumbled to 128 in pursuit of their 187-run target.
Wade described the win as "bittersweet" considering the Hurricanes' fate is not entirely in their own hands.
"To be able to perform like that with those guys back ... if we could have done it a touch earlier we wouldn't be in this position," he said.
"We know that we need a win and if things fall our way. If they don't, we haven't played good enough cricket in this tournament to deserve the number five spot."
The match against Adelaide could be the last for retiring veteran and soon-to-be national selector George Bailey, who turned back the clock with a valuable 10-ball 29 in the win over Sydney.
