Hobart Hurricanes to round out road trip with match against Melbourne Stars at Moe
A win on Sunday would see the Hobart Hurricanes return home for their Christmas Eve Big Bash clash with an unblemished record — but they will have to do it without two of their stars.
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THE opportunity to return home for their Christmas Eve Big Bash clash with an unblemished record from arguably the toughest road trip in the competition is not lost on Hurricanes skipper Ben McDermott.
Hobart’s players will jump on a bus on Sunday morning for the two hour drive to Moe to meet the Melbourne Stars just 48 hours after suffocating the Sydney Sixers in stifling heat in Alice Springs.
A carefully managed workload to avoid exhaustion and potential injury will see veteran George Bailey and important all-rounder James Faulkner rested from the match, but McDermott is eyeing off a clean sweep of the taxing road journey to set the foundations for another strong tournament.
“It was awesome to get the first win and hopefully it’s the start of a good campaign for us,” McDermott said of the impressive defeat of the Sixers.
“It is a really tight schedule this year and three games in five days is a lot to play first up but we’re really keen to get to Moe and play another good game of cricket and then back home for Christmas Eve.
”That’s going to be a great spectacle I think.”
The playing squad trained for two hours in 46 degree heat on Thursday and while the temperature gauge was well into the 40s for the match, cloud cover provided some relief.
However the Hurricanes hierarchy will take no risks with two of their vital pieces in Bailey and Faulkner to ensure they are cherry ripe for the showdown against the Melbourne Renegades at Blundstone Arena.
ALICE SPRINGS PITCH PERFECT FOR HOBART ALL-ROUNDER
Jake Doran and David Moody joined the group in Melbourne last night, with Mac Wright and Tom Rogers the two unused players from the squad in Alice Springs.
“With three games in five days, the plan from before the tournament began was [to] manage James and George,” coach Adam Griffith said.
“It’s important that we have our eye on the whole tournament and how to get the best out of all our players.”
In a contest dominated by bowlers — the highlight a stunning spell of 4-12 from Afghan sensation Qais Ahmad which included three wickets in four balls — McDermott paid tribute to the innings of D’Arcy Short, who scored 51 from 41 balls and struck more boundaries (five) than remaining 21 players combined.
“He just does it time in, time out, he is one of the most consistent performers for us and the Big Bash in general,” McDermott said.
“He is a gun player and it was an awesome innings in the circumstances.”
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