Melbourne Renegades coach Cameron White on why Marvel wicket impacts recruiting

Melbourne Renegades coach Cameron White says there’s a reason the franchise struggles to attract top talent, particularly batters.

Melbourne Renegades coach Cameron White says the club “definitely” faces challenges with recruiting due to the surface at their home venue Marvel Stadium.

Marvel Stadium’s outfield and wicket came under fire again after the first game of the summer there against the Perth Scorchers.

Scorchers coach Adam Voges slammed the state of the venue post-match, calling it “substandard”.

The Renegades remain under contract with Marvel Stadium for at least one more season.

Speaking to ABC Summer Grandstand, White used Victorian Matt Short – who just inked an extension with the Adelaide Strikers – as an example.

He questioned why any star batter would turn their back on a better wicket to sign at the Renegades.

“Why would Matt Short probably leave the Adelaide Oval on one of the best surfaces in the competition to potentially come and bat at Marvel, which we know can be good but is inconsistent,” White said.

Renegades coach Cameron White questioned why a batter like Matt Short would want to ditch Adelaide Oval to bat at Marvel Stadium. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

“Trying to recruit batsman to the Renegades can be a bit more challenging, but at the same time we think we’ve got some batters who have now seen Marvel and are a bit more equipped to deal with the different situations you can confront there.

“As we saw verse Brisbane Heat, the wicket can be fantastic and the cricket can be very entertaining as well.”

White says the issue with Marvel Stadium is purely around the playing arena.

“I think as a place to play cricket it’s great, the change rooms, playing inside under the roof is really good to watch like it is going to watch a game of footy,” he said.

“We like it and enjoy playing there, but the facts are we need to get the ground and the wicket especially (better).”

The Renegades had a strong free agency period, signing top bowlers Brendan Doggett (Strikers) and Jason Behrendorff (Scorchers) as well as opening bat Caleb Jewell (Hurricanes).

The Renegades aimed to bolster their bowling to complement the explosive top six that includes Josh Brown and Jake Fraser-McGurk.

“We just felt as though we needed to add to our skill set, not only to suit the wicket there at Marvel but to give us the best chance to win games away from home as well,” White said.

“Adding Brendan and Jason, I think, has done that and strengthened our line-up.

“We have Will Sutherland and Fergus O’Neill there and Tom Rogers had a great season as well. It’s looking like a strong bowling line-up now.”

The Renegades are unlikely to have Englishman Jacob Bethell next summer, as he is expected be touring with the Test side.