Stoinis-inspired Stars crush Renegades

The match in a tweet: Stoinis in sparkling form as Stars trounce the Renegades at the MCG to claim second win of #BBL|08

The score: Melbourne Renegades 9-148 (Christian 32; Bravo 3-27, Stoinis 2-26, Boland 2-32) lost to Melbourne Stars 3-151 (Stoinis 78no, Maxwell 33; Boyce 2-23) by seven wickets with 13 balls remaining 

The hero: Promoted to open after Peter Handscomb returned to Test duties, Marcus Stoinis stood tall for Melbourne Stars with an impressive half-century against Melbourne Renegades at the MCG. The powerful allrounder mixed aggression (he hit four sixes and hit a maximum from the final ball of the match) with finesse to finish with an unbeaten 78 from 49 balls. His 67-run stand with Ben Dunk (32) for the first wicket laid the foundations for a crucial win which improved the Stars’ KFC BBL record to 2-2. Stoinis also impressed with the ball, removing two of the Renegades’ top four batsmen – Mackenzie Harvey and Mohammad Nabi – to return 2-26 from three overs and firing in the field (see below). 

The supporting cast: Dwayne Bravo shone in his first outing against his former side, with the Stars’ allrounder collecting 3-27 from four overs. He grabbed the key wickets of Cameron White and Daniel Christian and also removed Cameron Boyce in an impressive bowling display as his team limited the Renegades to 9-148. Bravo could claimed four wickets had he not put down a difficult chance off his own bowling in the last over. The West Indian has six wickets in four games since switching to the Stars. Scott Boland (2-32), Adam Zampa (1-24) and Sandeep Lamichhane (1-31) also grabbed wickets. Skipper Glenn Maxwell (33 from 22 balls) combined with Stoinis for a 65-run stand in the run chase. 

The consolation act: On a tough night for the Renegades, experienced spinner Cameron Boyce delivered a fine spell, returning 2-23 from four overs. He grabbed the wickets of Dunk and Maxwell but his teammates failed to land the required blows to prevent defeat. Boyce is at his third BBL franchise, having previously had stints with Hobart Hurricanes and Adelaide Strikers.

The delivery: Renegades skipper Tom Cooper was knocked over by a superb wrong ‘un from the Stars’ Nepalese leg-spinner Lamichhane. Cooper went for a big booming drive on the last ball of the 12th over but the delivery spun back between his bat and pad, triggering praise from champion leggie Shane Warne on Fox Cricket. “That’s a ripper,” Warne said. “Set him up nicely – and just the execution of skill. Lamichhane has had a massive impact for the Stars so far in BBL|08 and finished with 1-31 from four overs. Lamichhane is set to be absent from the BBL for about the next month because of Bangladesh Premier League duties.

The collapse: The Renegades enjoyed a flying start after they were sent in to bat, with young openers Sam Harper and Harvey hammering 52 runs off the first 29 balls of their team’s innings. Then came the collapse. Harvey was the first to go, while Harper followed two balls later. Nabi, White and Cooper were all dismissed for 10 or less, leaving the Renegades at 5-80 off 12 overs as they lost 5-28 in 43 balls. From there, it was an uphill battle as they failed to reach 150.

The stat: The Renegades’ total of 148 doesn’t exactly jump off the page, but it was score in BBL history without a six. They finished the innings with 16 boundaries.

The stat II: The Stars have now won 10 of 14 matches against their rival since the BBL’s inception.

The catch: This effort from Stoinis deserves another look as the allrounder showed off his aerial ability…

The next stops: The Renegades will tackle Adelaide Strikers in Geelong on Thursday and will be chasing their second victory over the defending champions in BBL|08, while the Stars will play Sydney Thunder at Gold Coast’s Metricon Stadium on Saturday.