Last Updated on 3 months by Charbel Coorey
BBL 10 Match 2: STA vs HEA Preview Dream11 Possible Playing 11 Pitch Report | MLS vs BRH Dream11 Prediction Today | Melbourne Stars vs Brisbane Heat Key Players | Manuka Oval Canberra Pitch Report
The fancied Melbourne Stars lock horns with the Brisbane Heat, as the two teams hope to begin their campaign on a high. The Stars will take the field in search of the BBL Title which has eluded them for a long time now while the Heat will be hoping to add their second Title to the cabinet after a very disappointing season in BBL 09.
For the Stars, 2020 may well be their year as they will aim to go one better in this season. The Stars topped the standings previous season and even made it to the Final but succumbed to an agonising loss in a rain-curtailed Final against the Sydney Sixers.
They have retained their core from last season, although Jonny Bairstow’s withdrawal from the season, due to a call up to England’s Test squad, might hurt them. They have signed another destructive opener, Andre Fletcher, to replace the Englishman.
On the other hand, the Brisbane Heat have a lot of off-field reasons which have hampered their preparations as off-spinner Mujeeb ur-Rahman has tested positive for Covid-19 and won’t be available for the first few games.
Brisbane Heat and Melbourne Stars played twice last season, winning a game apiece against each other. Who will start off with a win here?
Key Players to Watch/Key Stats
Melbourne Stars:
- Marcus Stoinis scored 705 runs in the previous season of the BBL which is the highest ever aggregate in the tournament’s history.
- Ben Dunk had an ordinary BBL last season but was in good form in the PSL earlier this year as he scored 300 runs at a strike rate of 167 in 10 innings.
- Glenn Maxwell scored 398 runs at a strike rate of 148 last season as he was a vital cog captaining the side to the Final. He was also in terrific form for Australia recently, hitting three 50+ scores in six white-ball matches against India.
- Adam Zampa picked up 20 wickets in BBL 09.
Brisbane Heat:
- Chris Lynn is the leading run-getter in BBL history with over 2200 runs. Also, Lynn is coming into this match with three consecutive T20 hundreds in the Bulls Masters First Grade competition.
- Morne Morkel inclusion as a local player will benefit the Heat side. His last outing in T20 cricket was in the Mzansi Super League in 2019 where he picked 12 wickets.
- Other than Lynn no other Heat player scored more than 350 runs in last season’s BBL.
- Ben Laughlin was the leading wicket-taker of the Brisbane side in the previous season with 15 wickets.
Stats and Facts
- Head-to-Head: Brisbane Heat- 8 wins, Melbourne Stars- 4 wins
- Stoinis and Lynn are the leading run-getters between the matches of the two sides. Stoinis has 279 runs at an average of 31. Lynn has 256 runs at an average of 36.57.
- Melbourne Stars have played once at the Manuka Oval but lost the game. Brisbane Heat will play their first game at the venue.
Possible Playing 11
Brisbane Heat: The Heat side will be without many of their star players due to quarantine regulations or national duties and hence, they will field a second-string side in their opening match of the tournament.
Possible Playing 11: 1. Chris Lynn (c), 2. Max Bryant, 3. Dan Lawrence, 4. Sam Heazlett, 5. Tom Cooper, 6. Jimmy Peirson (wk), 7. Simon Milenko, 8. Xavier Barlett, 9. Matthew Kuhnemann, 10. Mark Steketee, 11. Ben Laughlin
Melbourne Stars: Compared to their opponents, the Stars will not miss any of the players who are not available and their core of Zampa, Maxwell, Stoinis and Coulter-Nile are available for the first game.
Playing XI: 1. Marcus Stoinis, 2. Hilton Cartwright, 3. Nic Maddinson, 4. Glenn Maxwell (c), 5. Ben Dunk, 6. Seb Gotch (wk), 7. Clinton Hinchliffe, 8. Nathan Coulter-Nile, 9. Adam Zampa, 10. Lance Morris/Dilbar Hussain, 11. Billy Stanlake
Manuka Oval Canberra Pitch Report and Weather
The weather is expected to be clear in Canberra and there are absolutely no chances of rain. The average first innings score in the last 5 completed innings in Men’s T20s at the Manuka Oval is 162. The decks will be the same as the one on which the recently-concluded India-Australia T20I was played.
Dream11 Prediction
Option 1:
Option 2:
Match Prediction
Considering that the Stars will be able to field a stronger XI and also their first-choice, they will have an upper hand over the Brisbane-based side ahead of this game.
Written by Sarthak Karkhanis. Follow Sarthak on Twitter today.
