After receiving the dreaded wooden spoon for three consecutive years, the Melbourne Renegades are finally back in the Big Bash final series.
The men in red finished third on the BBL ladder this year, and will host the Brisbane Heat in Sunday evening’s Knockout at Marvel Stadium.
The Heat are coming off a rain-affected victory over the Sydney Thunder in Friday’s Eliminator, sneaking through thanks to the DLS Method.
MATCH CENTRE: Renegades vs Heat teams, scorecard, videos, updates
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Heat skipper Usman Khawaja smacked a classy 94 (55) against the Thunder, and the Test opener was granted permission to take part in Sunday’s must-win clash in Melbourne, along with teammates Marnus Labuschagne and Matt Renshaw.
The Australian Test squad flies out to India next week for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, with several players already participating in a warm-up camp in Sydney.
“We’re very supportive of all our players playing in the Big Bash, within reason,” Australian coach Andrew McDonald told reporters on Sunday afternoon.
“The Heat players … have individually committed to that game, and it’s fantastic for the competition, so we’ve got everyone that we need here getting the best preparation for that first Test match in India. We’re fully supportive of out players, within reason, playing in the Big Bash.”
Meanwhile, Renegades paceman Kane Richardson is set to miss The Knockout due to family reasons.
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Renegades squad
Aaron Finch (c), Fawad Ahmed, Matt Critchley, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Martin Guptill, Sam Harper, Mackenzie Harvey, Ruwantha Kellapotha, Shaun Marsh, David Moody, Jack Prestwidge, Corey Rocchiccioli, Tom Rogers, Will Sutherland, Jon Wells
Heat squad
Usman Khawaja (c), Xavier Bartlett, James Bazley, Josh Brown, Max Bryant, Sam Hain, Spencer Johnson, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Matthew Renshaw, Mark Steketee
