Tasmania 252 (Neil-Smith 60, Webster 53*, Cartwright 4-23) and 7 for 217 (Jewell 52, Wakim 50) beat Western Australia 238 (Philippe 60, Neil Smith 5-43) and 230 (Marsh 58, Richardson 50, Siddle 5-40) by three wickets
A five-wicket haul from evergreen paceman Peter Siddle and a brave batting performance lifted Tasmania to a thrilling three-wicket Sheffield Shield win over Western Australia at the WACA Ground.
Chasing 217 for victory from what became a rain-reduced 58 overs on Wednesday, Tasmania reached the victory target with 26 balls to spare as rain clouds hovered close to the ground.
Charlie Wakim (50 off 81 balls) and Caleb Jewell (52 off 51 balls) produced handy knocks to set up the successful run chase, while Jarrod Freeman and Jake Doran held their nerve after Tasmania had fallen to 6 for 186.
Siddle, who hit the winning runs after Doran was dismissed late, wound back the clock earlier in the day by snaring 5 for 40 to dismiss WA for 230 shortly after lunch.
Under normal conditions Tasmania would have had a minimum of 70 overs to achieve the victory target, but a number of rain delays saw that number whittled down to just 58.
They were cruising at 0 for 74 before Tim Ward and Jewell fell in quick succession. But Wakim ensured there would be no major wobble, keeping Tasmania on pace while dark clouds threatened to end the match early.
However, the rain held off for the final session and Tasmania kept the runs ticking over to ensure the required run rate never got out of hand.
Earlier, WA had lost 5 for 26 in a disastrous start to the final day to be in all sorts of trouble at 7 for 155, with a lead of just 141.
But Jhye Richardson (50 no off 59 balls) and Joel Paris came to the rescue with an invaluable 72-run stand to propel WA back into the contest. Richardson's fourth half-century of his first-class career featured eight boundaries.
He was forced to sit out days two and three after suffering a back spasm while warming up on Monday. But he didn't show any signs of soreness during his blistering knock, and he returned figures of 2 for 37 off 14 overs with the ball.
Tasmania quick Riley Meredith and 36-year-old Siddle were the chief destroyers on Wednesday during WA's innings.
Meredith, who had been a concussion sub for Lawrence Neil-Smith, snared the prized wickets of Shaun Marsh, Hilton Cartwright and Josh Philippe.
Siddle dismissed Cameron Bancroft, Cameron Green, D'Arcy Short, Richardson and Lance Morris among his haul.
Peter Siddle
Charlie Wakim
Caleb Jewell
Jhye Richardson
Riley Meredith
Western Australia
Tasmania
West Aust vs Tasmania
Sheffield Shield
Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: 
Email: 
