Usman Khawaja and rain thwarts Sydney Thunder as Brisbane Heat progress to Knockout

The Australia Test opener hammers 94 but inclement weather in Sydney cuts short the run chase. Heat will face Melbourne Renegades for a place in the Challenger

Sydney: Brisbane Heat 203-5, Sydney Thunder 52-1 - Brisbane Heat won by eight runs (DLS method)

Scorecard

Brisbane Heat kept alive hopes of a first men's Big Bash League title for 10 years after slaloming past Sydney Thunder in the Eliminator.

A combination of Usman Khawaja's 94 and inclement weather during the second half of the game helped secure an eight-run victory via the DLS method.

Thunder were set 203 for 5 and started well, navigating their way to 52 for 1 through 6.5 overs.

Rain began to fall early in the reply and grew heavier by the time the players were taken from the field before the end of the seventh over.

^{Thunder and Warner were left agonisingly short of the DLS par score (Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)}

Conditions did temporarily ease to raise hopes of a resumption but when the rain returned minutes later both sides knew their fate.

Victory sees Thunder, who progressed in fourth from the group, crash out while Heat progress to the Knockout where they will face third-place Melbourne Renegades.

Renegades won both of their regular season meetings by 22 runs and four wickets.

Khawaja will carry some impressive form into that match after nearly doubling his entire tally in BBL|12 with a 15th T20 half-century.

The Australia Test opener hammered 10 fours and three sixes from 55 balls before being caught at the wicket off Ben Cutting.

^{Labuschagne helped Heat surpass 200 (Jeremy Ng/Getty Images)}

Marnus Labuschange (73) provided able support and helped put on 128 for the second wicket.

It was a tough night for the Thunder attack, with Ross Pawson (2-0-32-0) and Usman Qadir (4-0-50-0) among the main victims.

Thunder looked in good shape in the chase with Warner hitting four fours in a 20-ball 36 not out.

James Bazley took the crucial wicket as Matthew Gilkes picked out Matthew Kuhnemann on the boundary.

But as the rain grew heavier the Thunder scoring rate slowed. Nine runs came off the final 11 balls following the completion of the crucial fifth over, leaving them short of the DLS par of 60.