Not sure if Natarajan can be consistent in Tests: David Warner

Heat look to regain momentum on home soil against high-flying Sixers

Brisbane Heat would be looking to get back to winning ways after falling short by a solitary run against the Hobart Hurricanes in their year ending clash. In the new year though, they would like to move on, make use of the home conditions and crush probably the best team in the league-Sydney Sixers. On the other hand, Sixers, with four wins in a row would look to maximize on their form and the form of their star players like Josh Philippe and Daniel Hughes. Now that Holder is not available, the two other all-rounders in Carlos Brathwaite and Dan Christian would have to pull up their socks and fill in for him. Denly and Burns to turn the tides for Heat The Brisbane team has looked a depleted side much due to the pullouts from the likes of Tom Banton. Also Chris Lynn the captain has not been able to play in the last two games and won’t be available for this one either. Morne Morkel has so far been missing the action, even after being a local player now. It is due to these problems that the inclusion of experienced guys like Joe Burns, who has been released from the Aussie Test squad, and Joe Denly, who is finally fit and raring to strike hard would give Heat some confidence ahead of the game. Along with this, they would be looking to get a fine balance among their foreign stars who can all bowl, especially Mujeeb Ur Rehaman and Lewis Gregory to get the team early and timely strikes. Mujeeb showed what he is capable of with the five for in the last game, while Gregory was at the top of his game in the match prior to that. Sixers won't mind another one Having won two fiercely close games against two Melbourne sides, the Sydney Sixers won’t mind winning another close one against the Heat. They have been buoyed by the comeback of Jackson Bird and the overseas replacement of Holder, T20 Blast’s highest wicket-taker Jake Ball. The England star will be looking to make an impact right with the word go. While these factors form part of an important consideration, what is even more noticeable is the fact that the Sixers have always found an unlikely hero in every game. They wouldn’t mind one in this game either and Bir or Ball could be that hero as well. Heat vs Sixers: Match Details Venue: The Gabba, Brisbane Date and Time: January 2, 02:45 PM IST, 07:15 PM Local, 09:15 AM GMT Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network, Sony LIV Pitch Report The pitch at Brisbane has been a bit on the slower side, helping spinners with grip and turn, and also those who are ready to get slowness off the surface with their cutters. This phenomenon is more seen in the second innings, although Gabba is considered to be one of the fastest squares in Australia. No team in the three matches played here so far, have been able to get past 150 in the first innings, and the chasing team, Heat all the three times have struggled to get to that total, losing twice with close margins ( by two runs vs Strikers and by one run vs Hurricanes) and winning one with a great seventh-wicket partnership. Hence expecting a high score game would be too much for tomorrow Weather and Bat Flip The weather in Brisbane would remain a bit chilly with partly cloudy skies and a 40% chance of rain. Even in the last BBL game at the Carrara in Brisbane, it had to be decided through Duckworth Lewis, hence teams winning the flip would look to field first. Heat Probable XI Joe Bruns, Sam Heazlett, Jack Wildermuth, Joe Denly, Lewis Gregory, Jimmy Peirson(w/c), James Bazley, Simon Milenko, Mark Steketee, Xavier Bartlett, Mujeeb Ur Rahman Sixers Probable XI Josh Philippe(w), Jack Edwards, James Vince, Daniel Hughes(c), Jordan Silk, Daniel Christian, Carlos Brathwaite, Ben Dwarshuis, Ben Manenti, Steve OKeefe, Jake Ball

BBL 10: Renegades vs Thunder: Melbourne keep sinking after 5th loss on trot

The first Big Bash League game of the year 2021 ended up being a rain-marred encounter with Sydney Thunder beating Melbourne Renegades by seven runs via Duckworth Lewis Stern (DLS) method. After posting a gritty 166 runs in 17 overs in the first innings, Renegades failed to keep Thunder’s scoring rate under check, courtesy some phenomenal batting by Alex Hales. After Hales’ departure, Usman Khawaja took charge and saw Thunder through taking them to 117-2 in 12 overs, when heavy showers stopped play and gifted Thunder their fifth win on the bounce, since their first match defeat against Melbourne Stars. Alex Hales’ form Once ranked 1 in the ICC T20 batsman rankings (2014), it is safe to say that Alex Hales had an underwhelming career. He played 60 T20 matches in the last decade never managed to establish his place as one of the most destructive openers T20 cricket has ever seen. Having said that, at 31 it isn’t too late I guess. In the current edition of the Big Bash League, Hales has scored 197 runs from six matches at a strike rate of 175.89. Along with Usman Khawaja, he has provided important starts to his team and has been instrumental in taking the game away from the opposition from the get-go. Chasing a revised target of 173 from 17 overs in a rain-marred game, Alex Hales’ attacked Renegades from ball one. The attack wasn’t mindless. He knew which balls to push, which ones to slog and which to punch. The controlled aggression meant that when Hales (45 off 19) got out in the last ball of the powerplay, Striker were cruising at 13 runs per over. The early onslaught provided the rest of the batsmen enough margin to mess up and then get their chase back on track. Usman Khawaja outduels Shaun Marsh There can be no arguments that Shaun Marsh was the best batsman of the game tonight. His 87 off 48 balls with no support saw Renegades post a respectable total. This is turning out to be a pattern for the Melbourne team where nobody has seemed to get going this season. They started off with good intent but once again failed to stick around and deliver. Conversely, Usman Khawaja’s gritty knock in a stop-start second innings (rain delays) saw Thunder through. Yes, a lot of it was because of the start Hales provided, but Khawaja held the tempo of the game once he departed. Not out at 48 off 34, he saw through the difficult overs of Imad Wasim and kept the score running at least 10 per over. Thunder are unit, Renegades have a catcher Sydney Thunder are one tightly packed unit. Each player knows their role well and they do not lose their heads easily. They have Daniel Sams who moves the ball early in the innings and then returns later with cutters. Offie Chris Green can bowl in the powerplay and then land yorkers at the death. If you can escape those two, you have a young leg spinner in Tanveer Sangha who has earned plaudits for his approach and quality. And this cohesion is not easy to achieve and Renegades are a sufferer of that. They have lost five on a trot now and reel at the bottom position of the league with just four points in six games. All’s not lost though. The highlight of the game today was a catch taken at point by Mackenzie Harvey who flung himself to his left to dismiss Alex Hales. Like most balls today, Alex Hales middled the final ball of the fourth over. The wide full toss from Mitch Perry, rocketed off his bat and to everyone’s disbelief it was caught at point. Learnings from the game Seeing that the Australian weather is a bit unpredictable, today’s game is another good reminder that, if there is rain in the forecast, take your Power Surge early on and use it as a launch pad. Renegades tonight missed an over of Surge after the game was halted at the end of the 12th over. This meant that they were able to take just one Power Surge over with a set Shaun Marsh in the crease. Once they took the Surge they scored 67 from the last 5 overs, safe to say, they could have scored at least 10 more. Now, a third of the tournament has been played and themes have clearly emerged. Safe to stay that Hobart Hurricanes, Sydney Sixers and Thunder are the early advancers, while Finch led Renegades and Chris Lynn’s Brisbane Heat need to get their act sorted if they are to remain in the league.

Reinforced Hurricanes eye win against mercurial Stars

The match between Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars is a crucial contest for both teams. Both teams have been inconsistent in the season so far and are looking to get some momentum going as the tournment enters into a more tense stage. Stars, under the captaincy of Glenn Maxwell, are facing a slight wobble mid-tournament. Losing their last match to Sydney Thunder by a big margin would not have done them any good. But with the nature of T20 cricket being very fickle, and plenty of match-winning players in their squad, Stars can easily get back into winning form. For Hurricanes, a season that started brilliantly is now throwing some problems at them. From being at the top of the table, the team has now come down to third. But they are still doing better than most other teams and need to keep the ship steady to book their place in the play-offs. Maxwell's Stars Need Boost With Glenn Maxwell and Nicholas Pooran in great form, scoring big runs shouldn't be a problem for the Stars. But there are some problems with the top order. Andre Fletcher hasn't got going in this season. His partner Marcus Stoinis has been hitting the ball well but hasn't gone on. Even Hilton Cartwright and Nicholas Maddinson have been underwhelming. But the lack of runs from these batsmen have been compensated for, to some extent, by Maxwell, Pooran, and Ben Dunk's batting. Like many other teams, the Stars have benefitted enormously from leg-spin. Adam Zampa has shown his match-winning abilities in this season already. However, the ban on him would leave a big hole in the team. Nathan Coulter-Nile and Billy Stanlake are capable bowlers with varying styles. The former relies on swing while the latter uses extra bounce. The nature of the pitch would decided who gets the preference. Hurricanes Looking Solid Hobart Hurricanes scored a victory in their last match by the slimmest margin - 1 run. But their overall performance in that match and the season, so far, hasn't been bad. There had been some issues with the batting line-up but they have been sorted out due to the arrival of Dawid Malan, world's premier batsmen in T20Is. The shifting of Ben McDermott to the opening slot has re-inforced the top order. D'Arcy Short is always a big threat at the top of the innings. McDermott, Short, and Malan will be the power center of the batting order. Colin Ingram and Tim David could help lift the score late in the innings. The bowling of Hurricanes has got a big boost due to the arrival of Sandeep Lamichhane. The spinner from Nepal has been an impact player in T20 leagues around the world. With spinners like Mujeeb and Rashid proving to be trump cards for their respective teams, Sandeep's arrival is very important. Faulkner's absence would leave a big void. But Scott Boland has been impressive. Riley Meredith has genuine pace but hasn't fully capitalised on it. Much was expected of Nathan Ellis and Keemo Paul but both have been disappointing till now. Stars vs Hurricanes: Match Details Venue: Blundstone Arena, Hobart Date and Time: January 2, 11:35 AM IST, 5:05 PM Local, 6:05 AM GMT Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network, Sony LIV Pitch Report Hobart will be hosting a BBL match after a gap this season. In the previous matches, the pitch looked good for batting. But when the conditions were favourable, seamers also came into action. With many matches having been played so far, one wonders whether the pitches will show signs of wear and tear. The weather may also play a part in determining the nature of the contest. Weather and Bat Flip Clouds are expected to hang around on the day of the match. This could help the swing bowlers in both the teams. If the skies are fully overcast, the temptation to bowl first will be there for the captain who wins the bat flip. Probable XIs Stars: Sam Billings, Ben Dunk (Wk), Hilton Cartwright, Nick Larkin, Glenn Maxwell (C), Nicholas Pooran, Nick Maddinson, Liam Hatcher, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Billy Stanlake, Zahir Khan Hurricanes: D'Arcy Short, Ben McDermott (Wk), Dawid Malan, Peter Handscomb (C), Colin Ingram, Tim David, Johan Botha, Nathan Ellis, Riley Meredith, Scott Boland, Sandeep Lamichhane

Back to full fitness, Rohit replaces Pujara as vice-captain of Test team

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) released the updated team India squad for the remaining two matches of the Border Gavaskar series, and apart from the injury replacements, there was also a revelation about Rohit Sharma’s position in the squad, with Virat Kohli missing from the action. In the updates squad, Rohit Sharma has been labelled as the vice-captain of the squad, a position occupied by the current stand-in Captain Ajinkya Rahane for so long before he took over the reins from Kohli after his departure from Australia. The development means Cheteshwar Pujara, who was named the vice-captain of the side after Kohli’s departure and Rohit’s arrival in Australia, will no longer be the deputy to Rahane in the next two Tests. There were rounds of resentment mong fans and it led to curiosity on social media about Pujara’s position in the leadership group of the team, but a BCCI official said news agency PTI that Rohit was certain to be the deputy to Rahane and that the option of Pujara as the vice-captain of the side was just a ‘stop-gap arrangement.’ Apart from the hint about the leadership group in the team, the development also more or less confirms Rohit Sharma’s chances of playing at the SCG. The team management will have to drop one among Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari, or Shubman Gill if they continue to take the aggressive approach of playing five bowlers whereas if they decide to go in with just four bowlers, Rohit will replace Umesh Yadav from the playing XI of the last Test that India won at the MCG. Team India Test squad Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur, T Natarajan