Photo Credit: Melbourne Stars
Three Melbourne Stars stalwarts have been named in the Big Bash League Team of the Tournament.
Glenn Maxwell, Adam Zampa and Marcus Stoinis were picked in a star-studded team of 13 from a selection panel of BBL coaches.
The Stars captain was selected at number gibr, while Zampa was the only specialist spinner picked.
Stoinis was named as one of the two X-Factor players.
GLENN MAXWELL
379 runs (3 50s) Average: 31.58
High score: 71* Strike rate: 143.56
7 wickets Average: 31.57
Maxwell was arguably the standout player in the first half of the tournament, amassing four totals above 39 in his first six matches while opening the bowling with key powerplay overs. The Stars skipper finished the season as he started it, smashing a defining 66 from 41 deliveries to keep his side in the hunt for a finals spot. He had a quieter patch during the back-end of the season but still managed to score 379 runs in BBL|10 – ranked 10th overall – at a rapid strike rate of 143.56. With the ball, Maxwell snared seven wickets and took nine catches to cap off a stellar all-round tournament.
Best performance: 70 and 1/13 v Hurricanes, Game 6
A Maxwell masterclass came close to snatching victory, clubbing 70 from just 47 deliveries after arriving at the crease with the Stars in trouble at 2/17 chasing 165. The highlight was a monster switch hit six – one of five maximums for the big-hitter – that sailed into the stands of Blundstone Arena. Earlier, Maxwell opened the bowling and took the important wicket of D’Arcy Short.
ADAM ZAMPA
19 wickets (one 5 wicket haul) Average: 17.47
Strike rate: 14.2 Economy: 7.35
Best bowling: 5/17
Zampa maintained his standing as Australia’s premier short-form spinner, finishing as the sixth ranked bowler in BBL|10 with 19 wickets in BBL|10. This included a whopping 17 dismissals across seven matches, culminating in a five-wicket haul at the MCG. The crafty leg-spinner snared multiple wickets on six occasions and took a scalp in all but three matches. To top it off, Zampa even registered his highest BBL score with the bat in a late innings cameo of 23 featuring a six.
Best performance: 5/17 v Strikers, Game 10
Zampa sunk the hopes of the Adelaide Strikers with three wickets in the space of the over in an extraordinary display of spin bowling. He finished with remarkable figures of 5/17 – the second best bowling in Stars history behind Lasith Malinga – from 3.2 overs. His performance helped lead the Stars to a massive 111-run win as the Strikers scored just 68 runs – the third lowest total in BBL history.
MARCUS STOINIS
396 runs (3 50s) Average: 33
High score: 97* Strike rate: 142.44
2 wickets
Stoinis finished his BBL|10 campaign with the eighth-most runs and the third highest score. The powerful opener set the tone for the Stars, hitting six scores of 37 or more in a season where he was restricted with the ball due to injury. His three half-centuries saw him get himself in then accelerate in typical Stoinis fashion, epitomising this in his stunning 97* against the Hurricanes. He played a part with the ball in the last three games, taking two wickets.
Best performance: 97* v Hurricanes, Game 7
He fell just shy of a century but this knock was one for the ages. Stoinis was on from ball one, hammering a slog sweep six before consolidating while wickets fell around him. The 31-year-old went ballistic after the halfway mark, smashing 65 off his last 24 balls, including an 18-run final over which was ultimately the difference in the 10-run win. The commanding innings snapped a three-game losing streak for the Stars.
Name of Author: Melbourne Stars
Melbourne Stars are a Twenty20 cricket franchise based in Melbourne, Victoria, competing in Australia’s Big Bash League. The team wears a green uniform and plays its home matches at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
