Cricket Fan Bags Himself $50,000 After Taking Perfectly Timed Crowd Catch

Most of us would struggle to come back from a sporting event with any money left in our wallets but one fan left today's T20 between Australia and New Zealand with a $50,000 cheque.

Test cricket might still be the most prestigious form of the game, fight me, but T20 is where the money is. Players can earn multi million pound contracts for playing less cricket, sounds like the dream.

Australia and New Zealand faced each other in an international T20 this morning, for those of us in Europe, with New Zealand knowing that a win would put them into the final of the tri-series than also includes England.

Martin Guptill and Colin Munro got the Kiwis off to an excellent start with an opening partnership of 132 with Guptill going on to make 105 in just 54 balls. New Zealand set Australia a target of 244 to win, a record target for an international T20.

However the highlight of their innings came with the penultimate ball of the innings when Ross Taylor smashed a six to the boundary and fan Mitch Grimstone took a perfectly timed and executed fan catch, earning himself $50k in the process:

Grimstone with his cheque. Image: Photosport

Speaking after the match the student said, "It sort of happened in a blur because it sort of came over and I was like, 'I have a chance here' and then I just put [my hand] down the wall.

"I'm not left handed but somehow I put it there and it stuck. Then everyone was just jumping all over me ... I actually just caught it and I was like, 'Holy!' It just went really quickly and I didn't really catch onto it until now. It still hasn't sunk in really it's all a bit of a blur."

The win is part of the Tui Catch a Million promotion which takes place at New Zealand's home international matches and is the second occasion a fan has won $50k with the first occasion coming last month in the ODI match against Pakistan.

Possibly just as impressive as the catch was Australia's successful chase of the huge target. With seven balls and five wickets left the Aussies scored 245 which meant England can still qualify for the final with a win over Australia.

Topics: New Zealand, Cricket, Cricket News, Australia, T20

Ryan Sidle

Ryan is a writer for SPORTbible. He covers all sport from football, formula one, cricket, rugby, tennis, athletics, mma and wrestling. He obviously hates YOUR football team and has no interest in synchronised swimming.

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