There is one match in the Big Bash League on Sunday and it is the first Melbourne Derby of the season as the Melbourne Stars host the Melbourne Renegades at their iconic home venue of the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
This is a huge match for the Stars who catapulted themselves back into the top four in their last match but there are teams queuing up to overtake them given the chance. The Renegades are just playing out time on their season.
Melbourne Stars
The Melbourne Stars were under pressure when they returned home earlier in the week but they hit the ground running on home soil when they absolutely demolished the Adelaide Strikers to revive their hopes of finishing in the top five. They need to keep winning though because just four points separate second from seventh in the table and two of those teams are going to miss out on the postseason. It makes the Bash Boost point worth getting too.
The Stars still didn’t completely impress with the bat, but as they have had a lot in the competition to date, they were the beneficiaries of a brilliant individual innings from Andre Fletcher. It might be a good thing that it was him who delivered it though because he has barely scored a run in the tournament so far. The Stars impressed with the ball against the Strikers and do tend to bowl very well at the MCG.
Melbourne Renegades
It has been another season to forget for the Melbourne Renegades. They won their opening match but they have only managed one victory since then and already are unable to make it through to the finals even with four matches left. They now resume playing the role of the spoiler and they would love nothing more than to spoil the chances of their city rivals. With these two meeting later in the week as well the Renegades have the chance to be a real thorn in the side of the Stars.
If the Renegades are going to offer up any resistance in this match and the three that follow it they are going to have to find a way to score some meaningful runs. They have been terrible with the bat for much of the season and the move to drop Aaron Finch to four in the previous game suggests panic is beginning to sneak in. They have enough spin options to cause trouble with the ball but that counts for little if they don’t bat well.
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Team News
Melbourne Stars suffered a blow in the lead up to this match with the news that Haris Rauf has been called into the Pakistan Test side so he has left the group. He hasn’t been replaced in the squad so you’ve got to imagine Liam Hatcher will come in for him. There is still no sign of Nathan Coulter-Nile.
Melbourne Renegades were touting the idea of having Rilee Rossouw back for this match but he hasn’t been named in the squad for the game so it would appear those hopes are premature. That might mean the Renegades are unchanged here.
Betting
This isn’t the easiest match to bet on because a lot of the lines need the Renegades to turn up for them to be covered and while there is a good chance they won’t show up here there is still the chance that they do so if you are on the under and they offer something you’re probably dead and vice versa. In saying that I still expect the Stars to win the game and assuming that they do I think their captain can give us a big performance.
That is of course Glenn Maxwell who has a performance line of 38.5 points here. On the face of it that might seem a touch on the high side but it might not be high enough. We’ve seen Maxwell open the bowling in this tournament and the Renegades have been shocking up front with the bat. Maxwell is also one of the best players of spin in the league and the Renegades are likely to bowl at least 12 overs of it so I’m expecting a big showing with the bat from the ‘Big Show’. When you add in the chances for catches given that he is the best fielder in the team I really expect him to cover this line, particularly when you consider he scored 77pts here on Friday.
Tips
WON – Back G.Maxwell’s Performance – Over 38.5pts for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Betway
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