Last Updated on 4 months ago by Charbel Coorey

This edition of the Melbourne derby has the makings of a cracking match. A huge crowd of around 60,000 is expected at the MCG to watch the Stars and Renegades do battle with different objectives.

The Stars are sitting pretty in second position with four wins out of five. However, they are coming off a defeat against Brisbane Heat in a game they had in their control. It was the first time they batted first this season, and their death bowling came under the microscope. It failed, so how will they respond?

The Renegades need to win this match. They have won just one of four matches as this season threatens to follow the path of other disappointing campaigns. Their batting has only been managing middling scores since their first up win against Brisbane Heat. Whether it can fire against a Stars attack that has largely been efficient remains to be seen.

BBL 2025/26 22nd Match: STA vs REN Possible Playing XIs

Melbourne Stars have named an unchanged squad. They could stick with the same XI especially as Blake Macdonald impressed so much on debut with 37* off 12 balls.

Melbourne Stars: 1. Sam Harper (wk), 2. Thomas Rogers, 3. Marcus Stoinis (c), 4. Campbell Kellaway, 5. Glenn Maxwell, 6. Hilton Cartwright, 7. Tom Curran (OS), 8. Blake Macdonald, 9. Mitchell Swepson, 10. Haris Rauf (OS), 11. Peter Siddle

Melbourne Renegades have named batsman Harry Dixon and spinner Callum Stow in their squad.

Melbourne Renegades: 1. Josh Brown, 2. Tim Seifert (OS), 3. Muhammad Rizwan (OS, wk), 4. Jake Fraser-McGurk, 5. Oliver Peake, 6. Hassan Khan (OS), 7. Will Sutherland (c), 8. Matthew Spoors, 9. Andrew Tye, 10. Gurinder Sandhu, 11. Jason Behrendhorff

MCG Pitch Report and Weather

Chasing teams have won six of the past nine BBL matches at the MCG. The average first innings score in these games is 156 at a run rate of 8.10.

Since the start of BBL 2023/24, pace bowlers have taken 94 wickets at the MCG at an average of 24.99 and economy of 8.06. Spinners have picked up 53 wickets at an average of 24.87 and economy of 7.06.

A cool and clear evening is forecast with temperatures in the teens. Dew is a possibility.

Fantasy Cricket Tips for STA vs REN 2025/26: Key Players to Watch/Key Stats

Top wicket-keeper picks:

• Sam Harper has smashed 231 runs this season at an average of 115.50 and strike rate of 158.21. Whether he can improve on his poor record at the MCG (213 runs, avg. 16.4) will make for interesting viewing.
• Tim Seifert is striking at 175.25 in BBL 2025/26 (170 runs, avg. 42.50). Since the start of 2025, Seifert has scored 1,653 T20 runs at an average of 33.1 and strike rate of 148.8.

Key batter picks:

• Glenn Maxwell has an outstanding record against the Renegades, with 681 runs at an average of 42.56 and strike rate of 153.03. However, he is a better pick if the Stars bat first as his bowling could be limited given the Renegades’ lineup is filled with right-handers.
• Jake Fraser-McGurk averages just 18.13 with a strike rate of 95.39 in eight games against the Stars. But, JFM batted with more maturity in the last game against Sydney Sixers. Something to keep an eye on.

Top all-rounder picks:

• Marcus Stoinis enjoys playing against the Renegades, boasting 486 runs (avg. 44.18, SR 123.04) and 11 wickets (avg. 21.27, econ. 8.07) against them. Stoinis won player of the match in the previous BBL match at the MCG this season (62* and 2/18).
• Tom Curran is the equal leading wicket-taker this season (10). Four of these wickets have come in the powerplay.

Key bowler picks:

• Haris Rauf loves bowling at the MCG. In nine BBL matches at this venue, Rauf has taken 13 wickets at an average of 16.9 and strike rate of 14.3.
• Peter Siddle has 10 wickets this season at the best economy rate of any bowler with at least seven wickets (6.80). He has 15 career wickets in 11 matches against Renegades.

Other Players to Consider for your Fantasy Cricket Teams

• Will Sutherland offers all-round value but has a horror record against the Melbourne Stars: 71 runs (avg. 8.88) and two wickets (avg. 103.50).
• Can Muhammad Rizwan impact this game? He has scored 134 runs off 80 balls against Haris Rauf in T20s (avg. 67, SR 167.5).
• Campbell Kellaway has looked in promising touch this season, scoring 112 runs at an average of 37.33 and strike rate of 136.58. He is a decent pick if Stars bat first.
• Josh Brown has started strongly in the last two games, smashing 43 (19) and 26 (13).
• Gurinder Sandhu is the Renegades’ leading wicket-taker this season with six.
• Jason Behrendhorff has taken 14 wickets in 13 matches against the Stars at an economy of 6.92.
• Mitchell Swepson has 10 wickets in eight BBL matches at the MCG (avg. 20.4, SR 17.4).

Other Stats and Important Matchups

• Head-to-head: Matches 28, Stars 18, Renegades 10.
• Stars lead Renegades 9-5 at the MCG.
• Glenn Maxwell in all T20s at the MCG: 41 inns, 1,332 runs, avg. 43, SR 156.9.
• Marcus Stoinis has 1,148 runs (avg. 37, SR 138.1) and 21 wickets (avg. 19.6, econ. 7.23) in all T20s at the MCG.
• Jason Behrendhorff vs Sam Harper: 15 balls, 23 runs, no dismissals.
• Jason Behrendhorff vs Marcus Stoinis: 40 balls, 42 runs, two dismissals.
• Haris Rauf vs Tim Seifert: 41 balls, 44 runs, two dismissals.

BBL 2025/26 22nd Match: STA vs REN Dream11 Prediction Today

Option 1:

Option 2:

BBL 2025/26 22nd Match: STA vs REN Match Prediction – Who will win?

Stars to win.

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All statistics and matchups in this article have been verified by ESPNcricinfo, Bigbashboard and Cricmetric.