Great innings, then dismissed (8)
I believe the answer is:
knockout
'great' is the definition.
Both the definition and answer are adjectives. Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'innings then dismissed' is the wordplay.
'innings' becomes 'knock' (I've seen this in other clues).
'then' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'dismissed' becomes 'out' (I've seen this before).
'knock'+'out'='KNOCKOUT'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for knockout that I've seen before include "Final stroke" , "stunner" , "Render senseless" , "Winning blow" , "Blow that deprives boxer of his senses" .)