To say that the Melbourne Stars have underperformed would be an understatement.
The franchise has managed only one win from seven starts this season and is favoured to claim the wooden spoon after being pulverised by the equally dismal Sydney Sixers.
The fall of the Stars is odd. There’s no doubting the talent of their line-up. They have two reputed Twenty20 players from abroad in Kevin Pietersen and Luke Wright, and most of the locals have international experience.
They have quality hitters from the top of the order, like Ben Dunk down to ‘The Finisher’ James Faulkner. There’s the all-round talent of Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis, while Adam Zampa and Michael Beer offer good spinning options. On paper their weakness is their pace stocks.
They can’t blame their struggles on a different line-up either. Sure, there have been changes, like the inclusion of the struggling Dunk, but their core squad has remained the same.
This season will be the first the Stars don’t feature in the finals. In fact the Melbourne side has the second-best winning percentage of all sides, at 58.33 per cent. Only the Perth Scorchers sit above them. What has gone so terribly wrong?
Stars captain John Hastings believes momentum is to blame, saying, “There’s not much atmosphere in our dressing room at the moment”.
(AAP Image/Rob Blakers)
And this is true. The Big Bash League is a dense tournament. When the runs dry up and the catches go down it’s hard to turn things around with the next game only days away.
Many key players have failed to fire. The typically consistent Luke Wright is yet to land a shot. Dunk, the leading run-scorer from last season, has barely touched double figures. Hastings and Co haven’t been able to make significant inroads into opposition batting line-ups.
Things are all a bit stale. Pietersen’s decision to depart at season’s end could prove to be a blessing in disguise. There is a rumour that his compatriot Luke Wright will set sail too. Coach Steven Fleming has a chance to reinvigorate his list, and this should include jettisoning the likes of Ben Hilfenhaus and Rob Quiney.
Who should they look for to become a force once more?
A quality overseas bowler, in Glenn Maxwell’s opinion. “I think T20 cricket is won with bowlers,” he said.
They’ll need some batting reinforcements too, but perhaps they should look for local talent and emulate the Scorcher’s model when they look to recruit.
This season has been a dismal failure for the star-studded Stars. But sometimes it takes hitting rock bottom to spark change.
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