In the 16th match of the ongoing Australia T20 League, Hobart Hurricanes will lock horns with Melbourne Stars at the Aurora Stadium in Launceston today (30th Dec). The match is scheduled to begin at 1:40 PM (IST). This is the first game of this edition at the venue. Both the teams are up to grab the top two positions. Both the sides have won two matches apiece out of three matches they have played each so far. While the Stars were defeated by the Adelaide Strikers by four runs, Hurricanes brought their momentum back with a compelling win against the defending champions Melbourne Renegades. The Stars edged past the Hurricanes in their previous face-off. So, this match will be a return fixture between both the sides.
On one hand, Hobart Hurricanes stand at fifth spot on the points table, Melbourne Stars are one step ahead of the former, i.e. fourth position. However, both the teams have bagged two wins and one loss from three games. While Hurricanes have earned 4 points (as same as the Stars) at a net run rate of – 0.342, the Stars have a better net run rate of + 1.150.
The Hurricanes have included Scott Boland in the 13-man squad as he has recovered from his injury for this match. On the bowling front, the team has Faulkner, Ellis, and Meredith, who have given impressive performance picking up three wickets each at crucial times. Qais Ahmad is also one of the top-bowlers of the team. All eyes are set on the opener D’Arcy Short, who has scored the most runs for the Hurricanes at an average of 40.
For the Stars, Marcus Stoinis and Dale Steyn are among the key players of the team. Stoinis has amassed 130 runs from 3 innings at an average of 65 and a strike rate of 125. Skipper Glenn Maxwell has been in the fifth gear due to his mental health break. Despite that, he has scored 128 runs at 42.66 at a fabulous strike rate of over 190. Adam Zampa and Sandeep Lamichhane are likely to strengthen their bowling force.
Pitch Report
The pitch at Aurora Stadium hosted two matches in the last season and both the matches were won by the team batting second. Those matches showed contrasting results and therefore, it is difficult to predict the behavior of the surface for this game.
Weather Conditions
The temperature hovers around 33 degrees Celsius, which is likely to drop in the afternoon when the match starts. The weather is expected to be cloudy and there are 55% chances of rain to disrupt the match.
Head to Head Stats
|
Teams |
Total Matches Played |
Matches Won |
Matches Lost |
|
Hobart Hurricanes |
3 |
2 |
1 |
|
Melbourne Stars |
3 |
2 |
1 |
Probable Playing XI
Hobart Hurricanes: George Bailey, David Miller, James Faulkner, Clive Rose, Ben McDermott (c & wk), Simon Milenko, D’Arcy Short, Qais Ahmad, Caleb Jewell, Riley Meredith, Nathan Ellis
Melbourne Stars: Dale Steyn, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell (c), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ben Dunk, Peter Handscomb (wk), Adam Zampa, Daniel Worrall, Hilton Cartwright, Marcus Stoinis, Sandeep Lamichhane
Key Players
Hobart Hurricanes
D’Arcy Short
Simon Milenko
Melbourne Stars
Glenn Maxwell
Marcus Stoinis
