Big Bash League 2019-20 | Stars vs Thunder: Today I Learnt - Haris Rauf > Dale Steyn and 1D Thunder

ByAnirudh Suresh, SportsCafe Editor

01/08/2020

I know this has been said year after year, but could this finally be Melbourne Stars' year? After yet another disappointing display from the Thunder batsmen - and an obligatory Haris Rauf masterclass - Maxwell and Stoinis made easy work of a small target to make it 6/7 wins for the Stars.

There is no end to Glenn Maxwell’s genius

There is more to Glenn Maxwell’s bowling than you think. He is no longer just someone who can ‘roll his arm over’. Trust me, he is now a proper asset with the new ball. In 8 overs he’s bowled in the powerplay this season, Maxwell has returned figures of 4/41 with an ER of 5.12. Today, again, he conceded just 9 runs despite bowling 2 overs in the powerplay. Outrageous, isn’t it? It won’t be surprising if we see a lot of this when the WT20 beckons us later this year.

Haris Rauf > Dale Steyn - at least for The Stars

Just when you think you cannot admire Haris Rauf’s bowling more, he keeps overshadowing his previous performance by doing something stupendous. Of course, you guessed it right. As if all the damage he’d done up till this point wasn’t enough, he had to go and take a hat-trick today. Is there anything this man cannot do? In retrospect, Dale Steyn bidding goodbye might just be the best thing to happen for the Stars. Don’t believe me? Steyn’s numbers this season - 4 matches, 5 wickets at an ER of 6.23 and Rauf’s numbers - 4 matches, 13 wickets at an ER of 5.87. Need I say more?

Sydney Thunder a one-dimensional batting team

For the third match running, the Thunder batting was guilty of not taking an aggressive approach. Today was also the third time in the last four occasions batting first that they ended posting a sub-150 total. With Alex Hales not firing and with Usman Khawaja, Callum Ferguson and Matt Gikes primarily being run-accumulators, their batting is too one-dimensional and predictable. The lack of an “X-Factor” batsman in the middle-order is clearly starting to show and you just wonder if teams are starting to figure them out. They are in desperate need of a shake-up - either to their approach or the personnel.

Nic Maddinson has forgotten how to T20 cricket

Six years ago, when Maddinson made his T20I debut versus India, had you told me that he would average 74 in the Sheffield Shield and 11.5 in the BBL, I’d have laughed my head off. All I remember is a 22-year-old kid fearlessly thwarting the Indian attack all over Rajkot. But it has happened. He has forgotten how to T20. 8, 40, 1, 2, 0, 17 and 13 are his scores in this edition of the tournament and when Ricky Ponting on air said, “He is a better batsman than that” when Maddinson went for a mindless slog over mid-wicket, I felt those words. And yes, now he has a better chance of making the Test side as compared to the T20 one.

The art of pinch-hitting is not dead

I was brimming with joy when Nathan Coulter-Nile walked in to bat at No.3 for the Stars today. He was sent in as a pinch-hitter to up the ante and arguably, he did his job, scoring 11 off 6 balls (1 four and 1 six). Coming back to my first statement, it just made me happy knowing that teams still realize that the concept of pinch-hitting exists. Back in the days, there was unbridled joy in watching a Nicky Boje or a Shaun Pollock or a Mitchell Johnson or a Nuwan Kulasekara walk in to bat in at #3 or #4 with the sole purpose being to smash the leather out of the ball. Sometimes it baffles me why teams don’t take that route more often, even in this generation. In fact, even a Sydney Thunder, who have a problem in accelerating in the middle-overs, would be better off in giving the tactic a go.