BBL10 | Preview: Stars face Scorchers at home; last chance to secure a Playoffs spot

Glenn Maxwell’s side Melbourne Stars would be up from their shocking defeat against the cross-town rivals Renegades, and if they aren’t already they would have now as their next opponent Perth Scorchers beat a tough Hurricanes side even after losing their five main batsmen at the score of only 108. So the depth in their squad has proven its potential once again and the Stars must be aware of it.

Maxwell's men must fight

It is a 'do or die' game literally for the Stars and it is here that they need to bring all their experience into count. Be it, Hilton Cartwright, Nick Larkin, on a comeback trail Nathan Coulter-Nile, consistent Marcus Stoinis, or the skipper himself Maxwell. Now is the time for them to fight together for a place in the Playoffs. Spiceman Andre Fletcher, however, has been ruled out of this game due to a quad injury.

Another thing apart from the experience of the players in their favour is the home ground. At MCG, the Stars have won two games in a row and they would like to continue the same momentum in this one too.

Scorchers would go for the kill

The Scorchers have won two brilliant games on the trot against two other hopefuls for the Playoffs in Brisbane Heat and Hobart Hurricanes would look to crush another dream in the form of Stars’ when they will take the field in MCG. All their players are in good form and if one person is getting out cheaply there is someone to compensate and that seems to be the best thing happening for the Men in Orange.

Apart from the world-known hitters in Jason Roy and Colin Munro, the likes of Liam Livingstone and Josh Inglis too are in their prime forms, and this is one of the many reasons why Scorchers have reached the second spot in the points table. Jhye Richardson and Beherendroff are picking wickets at will and with the addition of Mitchell Marsh, the team looks unstoppable.

Stars vs Scorchers: Match Details

Match Number- 50

Date and Time- Jan 22, 2021, 01:45:00 pm IST, 07:15pm Local, 08.15 am GMT

Venue- Dockland, Melbourne

Broadcast- Sony LIV, Sony Sports Network

Pitch Report

Melbourne Cricket Ground is the right place to play for the Stars as it suits their lineup and also their team which has great batters to bat on a true wicket and ride its bounce. The Scorchers would enjoy that too. However, Stars have Adam Zampa in the ranks who could get purchase off the wicket, but Scorchers don’t have any such option.

Weather and Bat Flip

Melbourne will be cloudy in the evening and hence with overcast conditions the team winning the toss would choose to field first.

Stars Strongest XI

Marcus Stoinis, Hilton Cartwright, Nick Larkin, Glenn Maxwell (c), Nic Maddinson, Clint Hinchliffe, Seb Gotch (wk), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa, Liam Hatcher, Zahir Khan

Scorchers Strongest XI

Jason Roy, Liam Livingstone, Colin Munro, Josh Inglis (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Ashton Turner (c), Aaron Hardie, Jhye Richardson, Andrew Tye, Jason Behrendorff, Fawad Ahmed

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Irfan Pathan a blessing to Jammu and Kashmir cricket: Parvez Rasool

“We have had a decent Syed Mustaq Ali trophy this season especially after the time we got for the preparations,” says Jammu and Kashmir captain Pravez Rasool. In an exclusive chat with Onecricket, Rasool talks about struggles during COVID-19 period, preparations for the domestic season, youngsters to watch out for and Irfan Pathan. How did you deal with problems during COVID-19? Rasool- There was a lot of problem all around the world due to COVID-19. We didn’t get any chance to go for practice so the only thing we were focusing on was our fitness. We were trying to stay fit and be game ready. But as soon as there were some relaxation, we began with with some training at a nearby ground after taking all the permissions and following the SOP. But as a team we got very less time to train together. It was a very challenging time for us. How do you rate your SMAT performance? Rasool- The kind of time we got for the preparations, we had a decent tournament. We won three out of five matches that we played. The other teams got more time for preparing themselves in comparison to us but we could have done better. The one problem we faced was that we were not able to click as a batting unit. We have been doing pretty well for the last few years and even the players are getting noticed. I feel in coming years, we are surely going to improve more in coming years. Is there money crunch in J&K cricket? Rasool- We have faced some problems because of the way the organisation in the past have worked but after CoA came into action, there have been some good work. The camps are being held regularly while we also have tournaments at district level to scout new and young talents.They took few steps that were encouraging and we have some new players coming up. For instance Abdul Samad is there. The players are pretty capable and talented but the only thing we need is some backing and support. Whom do you think can perform well in coming years among the young crop? Rasool- We have a very talented young crop. There is left-arm pacer Mujtaba Yosuf who bagged six wickets in his debut Ranji game and has 10 scalps to his name in two matches. Apart from him, there is wicket-keeper batsman Suryansh Raina and Abdul Samad has been proving himself for quite sometime now. Talk to us about Irfan Pathan’s impact in J&K cricket. Rasool- Definitely, his international exposure has helped us. He has been grooming the youngsters. Although, I was captain of the side but I myself learnt a lot of things from him. Whom do you think can go and play for the national team? Rasool- As I said, the youngsters are very talented and enthusiastic. Someone like Abdul Samad is one of those players who can play at that level. He has been showing his capability and probably needs one more good IPL season to knock the selectors’ doors. But these players need proper backing and opportunities. What kind of facilities are required to be introduced? Rasool- Our association got the affiliation way back but we haven’t got the proper facilities. For instance, we only have one ground which is also not in good shape. Apart from that, we only have two of turf wickets. There haven’t been any academies in these many years. But after the CoA came in, the situation has got better. They are focusing on these things and providing the facilities. Earlier, the members of the association used to focus on only a couple of districts but now players from other districts are also coming up. Recently, we got a new recruit Skalzang Dorjey Kalyan who hails from Ladakh. This is the first time we have a player in the team from Ladakh. The CoA has worked but we still need more facilities. What are your future plans? Rasool—If everything goes by plan, we are looking forward to the domestic season. I personally feel that the BCCI should hold Ranji trophy as days cricket is a more challenging format of the game. Would the selectors go for the same squad? Rasool- The selection totally depends on the selectors. It is most likely that we will go for the same squad but rest depends upon the selectors.

BBL10 | Preview: Heat up against party spoilers Renegades to save their campaign

Brisbane Heat after being humiliated by the Adelaide Strikers in their most important game of the season would now be up against a Melbourne Renegades side that defeated Stars in their last game to make sure that everyone notices their potential. It would be a tough game for the Heat as the Renegades team has nothing to lose, but the Blue Brigades are still in with a chance if they are able to win both of their remaining games and certain results of other teams, go their way. Heat bank on world-class batting lineup Chris Lynn the skipper Darren Lehmann the coach of the Heat would bank on their strong batting lineup to deliver at the time of crisis which they were unable to do in the last game. The likes of Joe Burns, Joe Denly, and Marnus Labuschagne alongside the captain Lynn are more than enough to send jitters down any bowling lineup. There however needs to be a change as to how things should go as too many similar kinds of batsmen are batting in the same team. Any one of the three among Marnus, Denly, and Burns would have to attack from the word as the team can’t afford to go into a shell as and when Lynn goes out. All-rounders like Lewis Gregory, Jack Wildermuth, and James Bazley also need to show character and stand for the team with both the bat and the ball to get a win and try to keep the campaign going. Renegades would like the young guns to keep going While all the experience guns of Renegades be it, Shaun Marsh, Riley Russow, or even skipper Aaron Finch hasn’t really been able to get going in this tournament, youngsters like Mackenzie Harvey, Peter Hatzoglou, Jack Prestwidge along with Jake Fraser-McGurk have really shown the world what they are made up of. It is these guys only who would be up against an experienced Heat lineup and try and execute their skills. They become even more dangerous because they don’t come with any baggage to prove to anyone and hence express themselves freely. Renegades vs Heat: Match Details Match Number- 49 Date and Time- Jan 22, 2021, 10:35:00 am IST, 04:05pm Local, 05.05 am GMT Venue- Dockland, Melbourne Broadcast- Sony LIV, Sony Sports Network Pitch Report In the two games that have so far been played at the docklands, it has been seen that the pitch is good for a batsman who gets his eye in and not for someone who starts hitting from the first ball without getting hang of the line and length and the pace of the wicket. It has so far produced two very good encounters so far and the same thing is expected from it going forward. Weather and Bat Flip The weather of Melbourne for tomorrow is going to be a bit cloudy and with the pitch so far assisting swing it would be a good wicket to bowl on early on and then it is going to get better with time. Hence the team winning the toss would look to field first. Renegades Strongest XI Aaron Finch (c), Shaun Marsh, Sam Harper (wk), Jake Fraser-McGurk, Mackenzie Harvey, Beau Webster, Imad Wasim, Jack Prestwidge, Josh Lalor, Zak Evans, Peter Hatzoglou Heat Strongest XI Joe Burns, Chris Lynn (c), Joe Denly, Marnus Labuschagne, Lewis Gregory, Jimmy Peirson (wk), Jack Wildermuth, Mark Steketee, Xavier Bartlett, Mitchell Swepson, James Bazley

BBL 10 | Jhye Richardson's all-round show helps Scorchers beat Hobart

Perth Scorchers beat Hobart Hurricanes by 22 runs in Melbourne on Friday to create a good margin between them and the rest in the Big Bash League table. Hobart were handed a target of 180 in 20 overs but had a disappointing start to the chase. While D’Arcy Short held one end, Hurricanes continued to lose wickets at the other. Short eventually departed for 43 while the scoresheet read 100/5. Hobart were reduced to 111/6 when Tim David tried to steady the ship for the side but he continued to run out of the partners and were restricted to 157/8. Jhye Richardson bagged a four-wicket haul at the cost of 33 runs in 4 overs while Jason Behrendorff picked up a couple of wickets. Richardson’s scalps included the dismissals of captain Matthew Wade, Ben McDermott, Peter Handscomb and David while Behrendorff removed Short and Dawid Malan. Earlier, batting first, Perth put 179/8 on the board. Josh Inglis notched up a half-century while Richardson chipped in with a 14-ball 29. Nathan Ellis picked up four wickets for his side. Richardson was adjudged man of the match for his all-round performance. With this win Scorchers are now at the second spot in the points table with 27 clicks under their belt in 12 matches. Hobart are at sixth position with 23 points in 12 games. Hurricanes are on a verge of getting knocked out despite getting a good start to the proceedings while Scorchers are nearing the top spot.

BCA suspends Deepak Hooda for entire domestic season

Baroda all-rounder Deepak Hooda has been suspended by the BCA for the entire domestic season. The right-handed player had earlier left the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy after a spat with captain Krunal Pandya. "The apex council decided that Hooda won't be considered to represent the Baroda team for the current domestic season. The decision was taken after considering reports from team manager and coach about the incident as well as communication with Hooda," said Satyajit Gaekwad, chairman, BCA press and publicity committee. BCA joint secretary, Parag Patel said, "Hooda did the wrong thing by walking out of the team without discussing his issues with the management. But banning him for the entire season was unnecessary. He could have been reprimanded for his act and then allowed to play." Hooda had been appointed as the vice-captain of the Baroda side before leaving the having an altercation with Krunal. The all-rounder in fact fired a mail to BCA. "At this moment, I am demoralised, depressed and under pressure. As from last some days, my team captain Mr Krunal Pandya is using abusing language to me in front of my teammates and also other state teams who have come for participation at Reliance Stadium Vadodara," Hooda wrote in the letter to BCA, a copy of which is in possession of PTI. "Today I was practising in nets and doing my preparation for tomorrow's game with the permission of head coach Mr Prabhakar. Then Krunal came in nets (and) started misbehaving with me," alleged Hooda.