Hobart Hurricanes rocked by ghost of past, Haris Rauf

Former Glenorchy star Haris Rauf has delivered a withering spell to take down the Hobart Hurricanes.

Haris Rauf of the Melbourne Stars celebrates getting the wicket of Qais Ahmad of the Hobart Hurricanes Picture: QUINN ROONEY/GETTY IMAGES

THE Pakistani express who was plucked from underneath the Hurricanes’ noses has come back to haunt the side in Moe.

Haris Rauf — who was playing grade cricket with Glenorchy earlier this month and only landed at the Melbourne Stars as an import replacement due to an injury to superstar Dale Steyn — rocked Hobart with a withering spell on Sunday.

HURRICANES UP AGAINST MELBOURNE STARS AT MOE

Rauf became just the 12th bowler in the history of the BBL to snare a five wicket haul, finishing with 5-27 as the Stars routed the Hurricanes by 52 runs.

He now is now the leading wicket taker in the competition but remarkably may find himself on the outer next match with Steyn expected to return.

It was a sluggish performance from Hobart after their impressive tournament opening victory in Alice Springs, but the side only had itself to blame after committing a cardinal sin and letting a class batsman off the hook courtesy of a shoddy fielding effort.

PITCH PERFECT FOR SIMON MILENKO

The Hurricanes gifted the dangerous Marcus Stoinis (81 not out from 54 balls) two early lives and the former Australian all-rounder cashed in to bludgeon the Stars to 4-163.

On a wearing pitch it was a target which proved well beyond the visitors, who lost their three big guns inside the powerplay before being rattled by Rauf and strangled by world class spinners Adam Zampa and Sandeep Lamichhane.

Stoinis was dropped the first delivery he faced when Clive Rose was unable to hold onto a sharp return chance low to his left, then the spinner could only watch in horror next over when Riley Meredith and Qais Ahmad watched a skied leading edge land in between them at point when he was on just five.

Fellow opener Nic Maddinson (40 off 39) was also handed a second chance when he was bowled off a Nathan Ellis no-ball, but the left hander was unable to add to his score when Meredith (3-27) ended the 81-run opening stand.

A subdued Stoinis scored just runs 11 from his first 13 balls before exploding into action but despite his efforts, the Hurricanes dragged themselves back into the contest when Meredith removed Glenn Maxwell and Peter Handscomb in the 15th over to keep the target in the manageable range.

Any hopes of a successful chase disintegrated inside the first six overs when Maxwell had D’Arcy Short (nine) caught at square leg and bowled David Miller (seven) when the South African charged wildly down the pitch.

Rauf chimed in with the scalp of Ben McDermott, who was unable to control a pull shot to a 148km/h thunderbolt, before returning to bounce out Big Bash debutant Mac Wright and smash the stumps of Tom Rogers and Qais Ahmad all in one over.

Only some late hitting from Rose (32 not out from 18) saw Hobart avoid its lowest ever BBL score.