The Sydney Thunder have beaten the Melbourne Stars at the MCG by seven wickets in a match that has kept the hopes alive for the Sydney team of making the BBL finals this year.
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Final score
Melbourne Stars 6/147
Sydney Thunder 3/149
The Melbourne Stars host the Sydney Thunder at the MCG in this round of the Big Bash League as the bottom two teams desperately try to avoid the wooden spoon and impress the budget holders in the IPL. Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from 6pm (AEDT).
As the finals draw closer it would be easy to assume that a bottom of the table clash is as far away from exciting as it would be possible to get.
However when you look under the hood of this match there’s some interesting subplots that could make for a great day.
The Stars have been… well they’ve been… er… sort of… terrible. They’ve been terrible. Neither the batsmen nor the bowlers have put in decent performances and the fact that they’ve got one win from seven is not really a surprise.
Which is strange because when you run your eyes over their team least there is some serious potential there. Maxwell has been their best with the bat and with his strike rate of 148.61 he just needs some support from the likes of Wright and Pietersen to help the Stars post a decent score.
With the ball Jackson Coleman has had a pretty good season so far. He’s conceding six runs per over which puts him in the top eight most economical bowlers of the whole BBL.
But again there’s no support with the likes of Marcus Stoinis going for over 10 an over and John Hastings going for almost 9 per over.
Combine this with a serious lack of wickets – not a single Stars bowler has taken over eight wickets this season – and it’s easy to see that the Stars have got problems all over.
The Thunder haven’t been doing much better to be honest but they have had a handful of players step up a bit more than their rivals. Watson is the fourth biggest scorer in the competition this year Jos Buttler’s strike rate of 143 is impressive from his six games.
The Thunder’s bowling has been of an issue – Fawad Ahmed has done well both in terms of wickets taken and economy, but the likes of Mitchell McCleneghan have been leaking too many runs.
If Arjun Nair can keep his fellow leg spinner Ahmed company and bowl well then the Stars could really struggle to get some decent runs.
Despite the poor performances from these teams, this match should have some spice to it for a few reasons. Firstly it’s a Sydney versus Melbourne thing and both teams will want to have one over on the other.
Secondly the Stars will be very keen to avoid the wooden spoon. The engraver is very close to starting to put the M on the handle but there is still hope for the Stars. If they can win on Saturday and string a few late victories together then they could leapfrog the Thunder.
Finally the players themselves will be well aware that the IPL auction is just around the corner. Many of them will be wanting to show the teams in India that they should get their chequebooks out for them despite their teams’ poor showing this season.
There are big bucks on offer and some good performances in the final games could make an individual some serious cash.
Prediction
The season is arguably over for these teams so perhaps the lack of pressure to qualify will see some real fireworks.
The Stars will fight hard to avoid the wooden spoon but in the end the Thunder will have slightly more momentum and form for the home side.
Thunder to win and force the Stars to stay rock bottom.
Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting from 6:10pm (AEDT).
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Match Report The Sydney Thunder have beaten the Melbourne Stars at the MCG by 7 wickets in a match that has kept the hopes alive for the Sydney team of making the BBL finals this year. While the match was a bottom of the table clash, there was plenty at stake between pride, impressing IPL teams and the outside chance of finals cricket for the Thunder. The Stars were put in and it was the same as usual for the Melbourne side - plenty of talent on the team sheet but they failed to really live up to their potential. Handscomb batted well and reached a good fifty but he never had any real support that could help them post a really scary score. Pietersen continued his poor season going early to an outside edge that was caught behind, and the in form Maxwell was bowled by a beauty from Ahmed that went back in through the gate. Gotch offered some support but once both he and Handscomb were back in the sheds the Stars did well to limp to 147. The Stars needed to start their defense well but the Thunder's opening pair of Vince and Khawaja played very well and put on 85 off 8 overs for the opening stand. At one point it looked like the two of them might just get the job done themselves. When Khawaja went there was no reprieve for the Stars though as Shane Watson came in and got cracking with knocking off the remaining runs. When Vince went the pace of run scoring didn't really slow down and Watson just kept going. He got lucky twice when Coleman dropped him at fine leg but to be honest it would have taken more than getting Watson out to give the Stars a genuine chance of winning tonight. Watson pushed on and played some lovely, powerful shots and ended up with 49 off of 35 balls. The Thunder move to 5th on the ladder and the good win does help their net run rate. Mathematically they still are in with a chance of finals cricket but those above them have games in hand. The Sydney team will just have to keep winning and put the pressure on the Renegades who are just ahead of them on the ladder. For the Stars it's all about next year. This season has been a shocker and with players like Pietersen and Wright announcing that they will be leaving this year, there is a chance to bring in fresh talent and rebuild. The rest of the weekend has some great BBL matches including the clash between Perth and the Hurricanes - be sure to follow the coverage and stories here on The Roar.
Oliver Matthews
Expert
End of Innings The Sydney Thunder rack up a very solid win over the Melbourne Stars by 7 wickets at the MCG with 23 balls to spare. Match report to come. Over: 16.1 Score: 3/149
Oliver Matthews
Expert
FOUR! Coleman in for what we assume will be the last over. Rohrer on strike - and that's it - 4 leg byes. Thunder win by 7 wickets. Over: 16.1 Score: 3/149
Oliver Matthews
Expert
FOUR! And that is a man in form - Watson uses a flick/ramp shot to get his team within 3 runs of a good win. 3 needed from 24 balls. Over: 15.6 Score: 3/145
Oliver Matthews
Expert
FOUR! Lovely shot from Watson - big lofted drive over mid on and gets another boundary. 7 needed from 25 balls. Over: 15.5 Score: 3/141
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Watson cuts hard and Gotch saves a boundary with a good dive out on the deep point boundary. 11 needed from 26 balls. Over: 15.4 Score: 3/137
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Rohrer is in now with just 13 required to wrap this up. Hastings drops short with a bouncer and Watson drops under it. 13 needed from 28 balls. Over: 15.3 Score: 3/135
Oliver Matthews
Expert
WICKET! Green can't get hold of that one and Dunk is able to scurry back from mid on and take the catch. 13 needed from 28 balls. Over: 15.2 Score: 3/135
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Mis hit this time from Watson and it goes very high but lands safe. 14 needed from 30 balls. Over: 14.6 Score: 2/134
Oliver Matthews
Expert
FOUR! Lovely lofted drive from Watson - doesn't try to go too hard but just gives it enough to clear the infield and make the rope. 15 needed from 31 balls. Over: 14.5 Score: 2/133
Oliver Matthews
Expert
SIX! Too short and slow and Watson has sent that 10 rows back into the stands. 19 needed from 32 balls. Over: 17.4 Score: 2/129
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Green makes contact this time but it just rolls out to mid wicket for a single. 25 needed from 33 balls. Over: 14.3 Score: 2/123
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Green on strike and a big swing and a miss as he tries to pull it but gets nowhere near it. 26 needed from 34 balls. Over: 14.2 Score: 2/122
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Watson on strike to Coleman and it's a single. 26 needed from 35 balls. Over: 14.1 Score: 2/122
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Hastings wraps up the over with a good tight ball and there's no run. Thunder cruising here and Stars not helping themselves. 27 needed from 36 balls. Over: 13.6 Score: 2/121
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Coleman has dropped another one - almost the same as his last attempt but he was in a poor position as the ball flew to him and he was never in control of that one. 29 needed from 39 balls. Over: 13.3 Score: 2/119
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Mis timed shot from Watson over mid wicket but he gets two. A couple of big overs and this game is done. 30 needed from 40 balls. Over: 13.2 Score: 2/118
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Hastings continues to Watson who defends. 32 needed from 41 balls. Over: 13.1 Score: 2/116
Oliver Matthews
Expert
Bowe has lost a bit of control in this over as he goes for another single. 32 needed from 43 balls. Over: 12.5 Score: 2/116
Oliver Matthews
Expert
SIX! That is big. Bowe drops short and Watson launches his big pull shot for six. 35 needed from 46 balls. Over: 12.2 Score: 2/113