Match: Melbourne Renegades vs Brisbane Heat (MR vs BH)
Date: January 29, Sunday, 3.45 PM IST
Venue: Docklands Stadium, Melbourne
The Melbourne Renegades and Brisbane Heat will face each other in the knockout of the Big Bash League 2022-23 on Sunday, January 29 at the Docklands Stadium in Melbourne.
The Heat, captained by Usman Khawaja, once struggled to keep themselves afloat in the tournament, but made a remarkable comeback to make their way through to the playoffs. They come into the knockout with confidence, having won their last game against the Sydney Thunder by eight runs (DLS Method) at the Sydney Showground Stadium. Batting first, Heat scored a competitive total of 203 runs on the back of an excellent show by Usman Khawaja. The Heat skipper became the Player of the Match for scoring 94 runs off 55 balls, with the help of 10 fours and three sixes.
The Renegades, on the other hand, finished third in the points table with 14 points and a net run rate of -0.027. They will go into the match after beating the Adelaide Strikers by six wickets. Skipper Aaron Finch scored 63 runs off 54 balls against the Strikers to help Renegades chase down a target of 143 with 10 balls to spare. Earlier in the game, Fawad Ahmed picked up three wickets for the Renegades, while Tom Rogers and Kane Richardson chipped in with one each.
Ahead of the knockout game of BBL 2023, let’s look at the head to head of both the teams, pitch report, weather update, top picks for your MPL fantasy team and more.
Weather update and pitch report for MR vs BH, BBL 2023
The pitch at the Docklands Stadium has been balanced in the few games of this season that have been played there so far. The average first innings score from those few games is 149 runs.
Overall, a total of 12 T20Is have been played at this venue, of which eight have been won by the teams batting first. The captain winning the toss is thus likely to opt to bat first.
The average first innings score is 133, while the average second innings score is 134, which could mean we are not in for a run-fest. The highest and lowest T20 total recorded at this venue is 208 for 6 and 112 for 10.
The weather in Mellbourne will be mostly cloudy and there is a slight chance of rain interrupting the game. The temperature will fluctuate between 17 to 20 degrees.
Brisbane Heat team news and predicted XI
Team news: Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne and Matt Renshaw will be available for the Heat but Mitch Swepson is unavailable as he is on Australia’s upcoming tour of India.
Squad: Xavier Bartlett, James Bazley, Sam Billings, Max Bryant, Sam Hain, Sam Heazlett, Usman Khawaja, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Colin Munro, Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Matthew Renshaw, Mark Steketee, Mitchell Swepson, Ross Whiteley, Jack Wildermuth, Spencer Johnson, Will Prestwidge, Josh Brown
Predicted XI: Josh Brown, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Matt Renshaw, Sam Hain, Jimmy Peirson, James Bazley, Michael Neser, Spencer Johnson, Mark Steketee, Matthew Kuhnemann
Melbourne Renegades team news and predicted XI
Team news: Melbourne Renegades will be without Kane Richardson, who is missing the match due to family reasons.
Squad: Zak Evans, Aaron Finch, Akeal Hosein, Liam Livingstone, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sam Harper, Mackenzie Harvey, Nic Maddinson (c), Shaun Marsh, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Kane Richardson, Tom Rogers, Will Sutherland, Jon Wells, Jack Prestwidge, Ruwantha Kellapotha, Marcus Harris, Andre Russell (replacing Liam Livingstone, first four matches only), Martin Guptill (replacing Liam Livingstone, Corey Rocchiccioli, Peter Handscomb, Fawad Ahmed, Matt Critchley
Predicted XI: Martin Guptill, Shaun Marsh, Sam Harper, Aaron Finch, Matt Critchley, Jono Wells, Will Sutherland, Tom Rogers, Corey Rocchiccioli, Fawad Ahmed, Ruwantha Kellapotha
Head to head record
Melbourne Renegades and Brisbane Heat have played each other 18 times in the BBL, where the Renegades have emerged victorious in 11 games while the Heat have seven wins. In the last 5 matches played between the two sides, the Renegades have won four.
Five players to watch out for
Here we list five players you must pick in your MPL fantasy XI MR vs BH, BBL 2023
Usman Khawaja – batsman, Brisbane Heat
Usman Khawaja made 94 runs off 55 deliveries in the previous game and won the Player of the Match award. In all this season, he has scored 190 runs in seven matches at an average of 27.14 and a strike rate of 141.79.
Aaron Finch – batsman, Melbourne Renegades
Aaron Finch is the leading run-scorer for the Renegades with 418 runs in 14 games at an average of 41.8 and a strike rate of 122.58. He has scored a half century in both his last two innings and will look to get a hat-trick of fifties in the next big game.
Michael Neser – all-rounder, Brisbane Heat
Michael Nasser has been one of the standout bowlers for the Heat this season. He has taken 22 wickets in 13 innings this season at an average of 18, an economy of 8.45, and a strike rate of 12.7. With the bat, he has made 93 runs at a strike rate of 127.39.
Tom Rogers – bowler, Melbourne Renegades
Tom Rogers is the leading wicket-taker for the Renegades this season with 21 wickets in 14 innings at an average of 20.38, an economy of 8.23, and a strike rate of 14.8.
Will Sutherland – all-rounder, Melbourne Renegades
Will Sutherland has delivered with both bat and ball this season. He has scored 203 runs in 13 innings at an average of 33.83 and a strike rate of 156.15. With the ball, he has picked seven wickets at an economy of 8.21.
MPL fantasy XI – MR vs BH, BBL 2023
MR vs BH – where and what time to watch the match live in India
The Melbourne Renegades vs Brisbane Heat game at the BBL 2023 will televised on the Sony Sports Network in India. You can also watch the game on the Sony Liv app. The match will begin at 3.45 PM IST on January 29.
Check out our detailed guide on fantasy cricket for more tips and tricks. https://www.mpl.live/blog/todays-match-prediction/
Note: The players recommended here need not be a part of the Playing 11 on game day. Users are advised to do their own research also and follow official sources and create their teams.
