Big Bash League opener: Melbourne Stars vs Melbourne Renegades preview, analysis

The Melbourne derby is seemingly the perfect way to kick off the 2013 Big Bash League in Victoria this year, with an abundance of talent on display for the opening match of the competition.

These two teams played in the opening round last year as well, and while it was the Renegades who might have won on the night, both clubs ended up making it to the semifinals of the competition — where they were eliminated by the Scorchers and Heat respectively.

This one promises to be a truly fascinating fixture to kick off the competition this year; read on for a full preview including all the key match details, players to watch for, team squads and more.

Full Preview
Date: Friday, December 20, 2013
Time: 7:45pm AEDT (7:45pm local time)
Venue: Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
TV: Live coverage via Network 10

Previous Encounters
Jan. 7, 2012 — Stars (5/167) def. Renegades (3/58) by 11 runs (D/L) method
Dec. 7, 2012 — Renegades (2/168) def. Stars (5/167) by 8 wickets
Jan. 6, 2013 — Renegades (1/147) def. Stars (9/146) by 9 wickets

Team Squads (final lineups announced later in week)
Melbourne Stars — Cameron White (capt.), Alexander Keith, Brad Hodge, Clint McKay, Clive Rose, Daniel Worrall, David Hussey, Glenn Maxwell, Jackson Bird, James Faulkner, John Hastings, Lasith Malinga, Luke Wright, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, Peter Handscomb, Rob Quiney, Scott Boland

Melbourne Renegades — Aaron Finch (capt.), Aaron O’Brien, Alex Doolan, Ben Rohrer, Daniel Harris, Fawad Ahmed, James Pattinson, Jayde Herrick, Jos Butler, Matthew Gale, Michael Hill, Mohammad Hafeez, Muthiah Muralidaran, Nathan Rimmington, Peter Nevill, Peter Siddle, Tom Cooper, Will Sheridan, Jake Haberfield

THREE STARS TO WATCH FOR
Brad Hodge, Melbourne Stars
The Stars have without doubt one of the strongest batting lineups in the competition this year with several prolific run-scorers — the biggest of which is Brad Hodge. The former Australian Test player has amassed close to 6,000 career T20 runs and has chalked up incredibly strong averages in the past two years of Big Bash competition.

In 2011/12, his average was a commanding 47.50; in 2012/13 that number rose even higher to 48.85, and he’ll no doubt be a huge scalp for any bowling side right throughout the competition. Keep an eye on his bowling too: Hodge has picked up 62 wickets in just 79 innings in T20 cricket.

Aaron Finch, Melbourne Renegades
Arguably the best T20 player in the country, Aaron Finch stands as the biggest name to watch for whenever the Renegades are sent into bat. Finch has finished inside the top seven players for total runs in each of the past two Big Bash seasons, with his international T20 form even greater than that. Few could forget his phenomenal 156 of 63 balls against England earlier this year, and if he reproduces that form in the Big Bash, the Renegades could go a long way indeed.

Mohammad Hafeez, Melbourne Renegades
Finch might line up as the No. 1 batsman on the Renegades’ roster but look for Pakistan international Mohammad Hafeez to also make a huge splash this year. Hafeez has made a name for himself as one of the top players in shorter forms of the game — becoming just the third player to score more than 1,000 ODI runs and take more than 30 ODI wickets in a calendar year throughout 2011. The 30-year-old is ranked as one of the top T20 all-rounders in the world, and will certainly play a huge role for the Renegades throughout both innings of the match.

The Last Word…
“[We don’t have] many egos; we just turn up and try to do our business. They’ve got the high profile players and all the big names; we’ll just fly under the radar again and see how we go…” (Aaron Finch via AAP)