Maxwell's Stars up against dangerous-looking Thunder

Melbourne Stars have to get over their heart-breaking loss to Sydney Sixers in their last game before taking on the other side from that city - Sydney Thunder. The latter team is on a high, having bowled out their opponents, Melbourne's other team - Renegades - for just 80.

Both sides have produced some compelling performances this season. However, its the Sydney team which is currently ahead with three wins from four matches while Stars have two victories from an equal number of games.

This will be the second meeting between the two sides in this tournament after their earlier clash on December 12. In this match, Stars had emerged victorious by a comfortable margin of 22 runs.

Stars Look to Iron Out Flaws

It's not been a terrible season for the Stars and things would have been looking very rosy had it not been the last-minute slip-up against Sixers. But there is still room for improvement.

For instance, opener Andre Fletcher hasn't fired despite playing some lusty shots. With Sam Billings back in the squad, he is likely to take Fletcher's place. His partner Marcus Stoinis has looked better. If they have to go far in this tournament, the Melbourne-based side have to find a working partnership for the opening wicket. Perhaps Fletcher will get another chance.

Captain Glenn Maxwell is in terrific form, as was Nicholas Pooran. Hilton Cartwright is going about his work rather well. The lower order is a bit of a problem with neither Nick Larkin nor wicketkeepr Ben Dunk having had a good score so far.

The bowling deapartment looks better. Nathan Coulter-Nile and Billy Stanlake form a really good fast bowling duo. They are well complimented by Adam Zampa whose form in limted-overs cricket has been phenomenal. Zahir Khan and Liam Hatcher can also be useful. The only issue is Glenn Maxwell's bowling. He backs himself but hasn't produced any results, so far.

Thunder Down Under

Lying currently at no. 2 in the points table, behind their city rivals, the Sixers, Thunder would like to solidify their position at the top. They have the resources for it also. Usman Khawaja and Alex Hales are very capable batsmen but have failed to convert good starts into bigger scores.

Captain Callum Ferguson has got a fifty under his belt while Daniel Sams played a blinder of an innings to earn a promotion in the batting order. He failed in the first go at the no. 5 position but may get another chance.

The bowling of the team looks very exciting due to the presence of two exciting players. Adam Milne has added high pace to the arsenal of this team while Tanveer Sangha has developed into a brilliant spinner. Players like Sams and McAndrew have to provide adequate support to these two, if not a great performance on their own.

Stars vs Thunder: Match Details

Venue: Manuka Oval, Canberra

Date and Time: December 29, 1:45 PM IST, 7:15 PM Local, 8:15 AM GMT

Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network

Pitch Report

The pitch at Canberra has provided good help to the spinners. The short boundaries tempt the batsmen to go for big hits, which makes spinners all the more effective. But if a batsman gets set, there are good chances for him to score big also.

Weather and Toss

Some clouds will hover in the sky but chances of rain are negligible. The evening will be cool, thereby providing some relief to the bowlers. Toss isn't likely to play that big a factor.

Probable XIs

Thunder: Usman Khawaja, Alex Hales, Callum Ferguson (C), Oliver Davies, Daniel Sams, Ben Cutting, Chris Green, Baxter Holt (Wk), Nathan McAndrew, Adam Milne, Tanveer Sangha

Stars: Marcus Stoinis, Sam Billings, Glenn Maxwell (C), Hilton Cartwright, Nicholas Pooran, Ben Dunk (Wk), Nick Larkin, Billy Stanlake, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa, Liam Hatcher

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Inside out | Always rising as bowler, Bumrah now blossoming as leader of the attack

It's the 19th over of Australia's second innings, but for a change from the first innings, Mohammed Siraj has already bowled 21 balls in his first spell. This opportunity too, of bowling with a relatively new ball too arrived through an injury to his senior partner Umesh Yadav who could not bowl a longish spell with the new ball due to a calf injury. Siraj is working a nice rhythm while Ravichandran Ashwin was playing tricks with the ball to keep Marnus Labuschagne what was to happen on every next ball and eventually dismissing him with one that kept going on with the arm. For the hosts, Matthew Wade was looking in no mood to give his wicket away like in the first innings and batting vigilantly against Ashwin, until one delivery off Siraj moved off the pitch to hit him on his pad. Siraj showed all his exuberance and pleaded hard enough to the skipper Ajinkya Rahane to go for the review albeit very reluctantly. The ball-tracking showed the ball had pitched way outside the leg stump and it was evident in the Rahane’s reluctance in going for the review. On the face of it, the decision of going for the review looked awful, Siraj’s adamant demand for it looked ever so ridiculous. Siraj would be forgiven for his passion on his Test debut, but Rahane got sucked into that pleading from Siraj and India lost that review. The display of the ball tracker on the big screen would have been seen by all including Siraj and it must not have been a great spectacle for his cricketing acumen while he was calling on his captain to call for the review. It could have stuck in his mind, and he could have felt the heat of a bad error in judgment, but the only pacer who was left for the tourists on the pitch and their talisman with the ball—Jasprit Bumrah patted Siraj’s back more than once as the young man was walking towards the end of his bowling mark with his head down in guilt of wasting a review and disappointment of not getting a wicket he thought he had in his pocket. In Siraj’s spell, Bumrah was fielding at the mid-off position, where players standing play an important role as bowlers go through long spells where they set a batsman up. At the same venue, Bumrah was at the receiving end of wise words from Rohit Sharma standing at mid-off which led to him bowling a slower ball on the last before the lunch interval that had left Shaun Marsh to look like a student who saw a question from part of syllabus he did not even touch before appearing for the examination. It was critical for Siraj to come good on the third day as the pitch was only getting better to bat with the sun coming out and India were also without one of their three seamers. Ashwin was bowling with superb control but he could not bowl for forever while Bumrah had finished his first spell and there the seamer who has grown more rapidly than the number of his playing days in Test cricket though the inputs from id off will be critical. In his short playing career, Bumrah has shown all the qualities of being a thinking cricketer, but on the third day of the MCG Test, he understood that Siraj needed a bit of comfort that he belonged to this level to ease up and bowl according to his strengths. It was not the first time Siraj got the back of Bumrah, as the current spearhead of the Indian pace bowling had also spoken very highly of his performance in the first innings and especially the confidence is shown by Siraj in trying to execute all his plans on his debut Test received special mention in Bumrah’s word of appreciation. “He has worked really hard and come up the ranks. He was eager to bowl in the first session itself. There wasn’t a lot happening after lunch and he (Siraj) bowled with a lot of control. Suddenly he started getting some movement and wanted to make the best of it. Playing his first Test match, he bowled really well and had the confidence of using all his skills. It’s a heartening sign for us and hopefully, he will continue doing that,” Bumrah had said at the end of the first day’s play. Bumrah’s move of comforting Siraj paid off as he moved on from that horrible review call and the focus to bowl in the channel outside off stump was regained by the time he return with his second spell after the fall of Steve Smith at the hands of Bumrah and Wade through a faster spinner off Jadeja. Siraj was brought back into the attack and on cue, his first delivery was shaping away from Travis Head after pitching around the off stump line and lured the left-hander into pushing away from the body. The outside edge was found and so was the transformation of Siraj from a situation of putting his head down with disappointment and a bit of embarrassment to a certain delight of eliminating yet another hurdle in the path of his country’s character-defining win at the MCG. It must not have been easy for Bumrah to lead such a raw bowling attack where he with a 15-match long career is the most trusted pacer in the lineup but if the first two Tests of the ongoing series are any sort of evidence to go by on the maturity of Jasprit Bumrah, it can be fairly said that the gap the retirement of Zaheer Khan or the absence of Ishant Sharma has left in terms of guiding the younger players in the line up to prosper, has been started to be filled by the new talisman in the form of Bumrah.

Captaincy is all about trusting your instincts: Ajinkya Rahane

Australia are leading by just two runs but have only four wickets in hands to post a challenging total for the India team to chase, and once again the limelight was on Rahane's captaincy who marshalled his troops well to keep the pressure going on the Australian batsmen who are yet to hit their form this series. Discussing the aspect of his captaincy and the fact that he did not look alien in the situation of leading the team, Rahane said that trusting one’s gut feeling holds the key in clarity of decision making. "Captaincy is all about backing your instinct. You’ve got to back your gut feeling. Sometimes it goes your way but sometimes it doesn't," Rahane told Fox Cricket after the end of second day's play at the MCG. India closed in on a fantastic victory at the MCG in the Boxing Day Test on the back of bowlers’ fantastic day out angst the Australian batting line up to help Indian reach this position. He credited the bowlers for their relentless approach while defending the lead of 131 runs they secured in the first innings. "Credit to the bowlers, they bowled in the right areas,” Rahane commended his bowling line up. Before bowlers came back to run riots amongst the hosts' batsmen, Ajinkya Rahane, the batsman had to step up and he played possibly the innings of his career. However, Rahane still rates his century at the Lord’s on the tour of England in 2014 as the best innings of his career. Rahane was run out early on day three and it led to the exposure of Indian long tail which could not wag for a long period of time, and India squandered the advantage they could have had bowling on the third-day pitch. Rahane was answering to Jadeja’s calls when he was found short of the crease in pursuit of a quick single but showed a sign of being a great leader by going to the southpaw and consoling him to regain focus after his dismissal. Rahane would have known what Jadeja might be feeling after running him out, as he too was the cause of a Virat Kohli’s run out in the Adelaide Test. “I initially thought I was in. I told Jadeja not to worry about my run out and to do keep doing well. Unfortunately, I couldn't make it big (after the Kohli run out). I said sorry to him after the day. It happens in cricket,” Rahane added in his quick interaction with Fox Cricket.

Sixers looking to retain top spot against deflated Renegades

Melbourne Renegades had a forgettable last match where they got bowled out for a paltry 80. Their opponents in the next game, to be played on Tuesday, Sydney Sixers, had an equally memorable match in their last outing. As a result of their heart-stopping, final over win against Melbourne Stars, Sixers are at the top of the table. Renegades, on the other hand, are second from the bottom. With contrasting forms in this season so far, the two teams will face off in Carrara. While Sixers are unlikely to change anything as far as their team composition is concerned, Renegades might have to look at a few things. Renegades Look to Regain Form Despite being at the seventh position in the points table, Renegades are not looking completely out of sorts. Their batting line-up looks relatively good despite the collapse in the last match. Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh are the best opening pair in the league - at least on paper. Even the no. 3 and 4 in the batting order - Sam Harper and Rilee Rossouw got a fifty each in the second game. So, no great concerns there. The presence of Imad Wasim and Mohammad Nabi adds depth to their batting. The bowling department is also likely to remain relatively unaltered. Kane Richardson would remain the lead bowler but whether Josh Lalor plays or Will Sutherland, or both, remains to be seen. The spin department looks very solid with the 15-year old Noor Ahmed showing some talent. However, it would be the more experienced Mohammad Nabi whom the team would be relying on more. Peter Hatzoglou is an interesting option but he, like most leg-spinners, can go the distance as well. Overall, the bowling attack has potential but is yet to fully find its form. They haven't followed up their good performance in the first match with good results in the next two. Sixers Soaring High For Sixers, it will be a case of hoping for more of the same. Their batting line-up is performing well with the captain Daniel Hughes playing a majestic innings in the last match. With Jason Holder and Carlos Brathwaite batting at no. 7 and 8, there is a lot of depth and firepower that this team has. Players like Jordan Silk and James Vince are very dangerous, as it Daniel Christian. The only problem is the lack of runs from the openers as a pair. While both Josh Phillipe and Jack Edwards have looked good at times, they haven't given their middle order the solid platform to build on. This could become a headache if they fail again tomorrow. Edwards, especially, has failed in his three last innings. This may tempt the team management to shift Hughes to the opening slot. Among the bowlers, Carlos Braithwaite has shown good control while his West Indian teamamte Jason Holder is getting into his groove. However, the real power lies in the spin bowling department with Steve O'Keefe proving to be very effective, both as a wicket-taker and run-stopper. Benjamin Manenti has been complementing him brilliantly. The off spinner and left arm spinner have formed a formidable duo. There is a problem with Gurinder Sandhu. His place in the team may be in danger. Renegades vs Sixers: Match Details Venue Carrara Oval, Carrara Date and Time: December 29, 12:50 PM IST, 5:20 PM Local, 7:20 AM GMT Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network, Sony LIV Pitch Report The Carrara Oval hasn't been used for cricket in a very long time. As a result, there is complete suspense as to what the pitch would be like. Most probably, it would be a flat track, the default option for pitches these days. But, who knows? There might a surprise or two for the players. Weather and Toss There is a danger of rain on the day of the match. This, coupled with the fact that the ocean isn't very far, could provide seamers some help. If the rain comes before the match, the captain who wins the toss may decide to bowl first. Probable XIs Sixers: Josh Phillipe (Wk), Daniel Hughes (C), James Vince, Jack Edwards, Jordan Silk, Daniel Christian, Jason Holder, Carlos Brathwaite, Ben Manenti, Steve O'Keefe, Ben Dwarshuis Renegades: Shaun Marsh, Aaron Finch (C), Sam Harper (Wk), Rilee Rossouw, Jason Fraser-McGurk, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Nabi, Kane Richardson, Will Sutherland, Zak Evans, Peter Hatzoglou

Bowlers lead India's prance into ascendancy

India tightened their grasp on the Boxing Day Test by dismantling Australia to 133/6 in the second innings after procuring a 131-run lead earlier in the third day.