Big Bash League 2019 Match 56, Melbourne Renegades vs Brisbane Heat: Preview, likely XIs, predictions

Brisbane Heat will hope to win this clash against Melbourne Renegades – it’s the final league match of the BBL 9 – and keep alive their hopes of making it to the knockouts of the tournament.

The truth is, Brisbane have their fate in their own hands. They have 12 points from 13 matches, and if they win, they are assured of finishing at No.5, the last qualification place, at the very least. They could even finish higher, if Sydney Thunder beat Perth Scorchers on Sunday, before Heat takes on Renegades on Monday.

Heat come into this game on the back of a surprising win over Melbourne Stars, the league leaders. The result very likely saved their season, as they were struggling at second from bottom till that point, having gone through a losing streak of three matches before that.

However, they do have to see off the Renegades first. It’s been a poor campaign for them – they’ve won just two matches in 13 – and it’s simply not gone the way the defending champions would have expected or hoped.

They do now have a chance to finish the campaign on a high at least, and it’s that determination for pride that Brisbane will have to deal with. It shouldn’t be as straightforward as you think.

Head to head

Brisbane Heat and Melbourne Renegades have clashed 12 times in all, with the Renegades holding historical advantage – they’ve 9 wins in those clashes.

Key players

Shaun Marsh (Melbourne Renegades): Marsh has been one of the sole positives for the Renegades this season. He’s scored 449 runs in 12 innings, and is their highest scorer. He’ll be hoping to finish a disappointing overall campaign on a high individual note.

Chris Lynn (Brisbane Heat): Lynn will look to lead the charge in taking Heat to the knockouts. He hasn’t had the best individual campaign by his own standards, but his 373 runs is still the highest in the team.

Likely XIs

Melbourne Renegades: Aaron Finch (c), Tom Cooper, Nathan McSweeney, Beau Webster, Mohammad Nabi, Dan Christian, Samit Patel, Brayden Stephen (wk), Will Sutherland, Cameron Boyce, Kane Richardson

Brisbane Heat: Sam Heazlett, Ben Cutting, Chris Lynn (c), AB de Villiers, Matt Renshaw, Marnus Labuschagne, Jack Prestwidge, James Pattinson, Mitchell Swepson, Ben Laughlin, Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Prediction

Brisbane Heat to win.