Melbourne Renegades vs Brisbane Heat, BBL T20 2022, Today Match Prediction

mlr vs brh Match Prediction & Analysis

Scintillating knocks from Usman Khwaja and Marnus Labuschagne helped the Brisbane Heat to reach the Qualifier of the BBL 2022-23. Heat will travel to Melbourne to play against the Melbourne Renegades. The Qualifier will be played at Docklands Stadium, Melbourne, on 29th January from 1:45 pm onwards. The winner will play the loser from the game between Perth Scorchers and Sydney Sixers.

In the eliminator, Brisbane Heat scored 203 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. After losing Josh Brown early, skipper Usman Khwaja (94) and Labuschagne (73) put up a partnership of 128 runs in 13 overs. The rain interruption foiled Sydney Thunder’s attempt to chase. At 6.5 overs, Thunder were on 52 runs for the loss of 1 wicket, with warner at the crease on 36 runs in just 20 deliveries. The rain stoppage helped Heat to beat the Thunder team by just 8 runs. 

Renegades played against the Adelaide Strikers in a do-or-die game. Batting first, the Strikers set a target of 143 runs. Leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed took 3 wickets for the Renegades for just 17 runs. The Renegades suffer a massive blow in just 3 overs by losing the entire top-order for 16 runs. But Aaron Finch scored his fourth half-century of the season (63*) to complete the chase in 18 overs with 6 wickets in hand. 

Melbourne Renegades have won both games against the Heat this season. They started their campaign with a 22 runs victory over the Heat. Nic Maddison scored 87 runs to take the Renegades to 166. Akeal Hoseain’s 3 wickets for 15 restricted the Heat to 144. In the second game, Hosein took 3 wickets again to stop the Heat side on 137. Andre Russell scored a quick half-century partnering with Akeal Hosein to win the game for the Renegades by 4 wickets.

With three wins in the last three games, will Renegades pull up another victory against the in-form Heat team?

TEAMS PREVIEW

Melbourne Renegades Preview

After finishing eighth in the last three seasons, the Renegades have finally turned the tables around. Though they are inconsistent, Aaron Finch and Tom Rogers’ forms might get them to the Challenger. Aaron Finch is currently the third-highest run scorer of the tournament, with 418 runs at a strike rate of 122.58. The retired international has scored 4 half-centuries this season, including two in the last two games. But no other player has been this consistent for the Renegades. With Martin Guptill and Shaun Marsh scoring at a collective strike rate of 112, Renegades' middle order will have a difficult task against the Heat.

Sam Harper will be our choice to be the top batter. Though Harper has scored 1,3 and 8 in the last three games, he had two back-to-back half-centuries before them. Plus, his strike rate of 145.78 while scoring at 145.78 will be crucial against the Heat. Will Sutherland should be sent at number 5. Sutherland has scored 203 runs coming lower the order at a strike rate of 156.15 - the most among the Renegades players. He also has 7 wickets with the ball at an economy of 8.21.

Tom Rogers will lead the Renegades bowling unit with Kane Richardson. Rogers is this season’s fourth leading wicket-taker with 21 wickets at an economy of 8.23. Corey Rocchiccioli and Fawad Ahmed will be in the playing 11 as spinners. Both have taken 5 wickets each in the last three games. Ahmed, who took 3 wickets in the last game, is the most economical bowler from the Renegades side with an economy of 6.41.

Key Players: Aaron Finch, Sam Harper, Tom Rogers.

Melbourne Renegades Predicted Playing XI:

Shaun Marsh, Martin Guptill, Sam Harper (wk), Aaron Finch (c), Matthew Critchley, Will Sutherland, Jonathan Wells, Tom Rogers, Corey Rocchiccioli, Kane Richardson, Fawad Ahmed

Melbourne Renegades Actual Playing XI:

Aaron Finch, David Moody, Martin Guptill, Matt Critchley, Sam Harper, Shaun Marsh, Jonathan Wells, Fawad Ahmed, Thomas Rogers, Corey Rocchiccioli, Will Sutherland

Brisbane Heat Preview

No one would have thought of Heat playing the Knockout game this season at the end of the first half. But they won 5 of their last 6 games to qualify for the Knockouts for the first time since the League changed its format. And the credit goes not only to the middle order but to the bowlers who made sure the batting efforts didn’t go in vain. Usman Khwaja and Marnus Labuschagne proved their place in the last game by scoring 94 and 73 runs, respectively. Khwaja now has 190 runs in 7 games at a strike rate of 141.29.

Matt Renshaw, Sam Hain, and Jimmy Pearson will play in the middle order for the Heat. Renshaw played a quick knock of 24 in just 8 deliveries in the eliminator. Pearson is the Heat’s leading run scorer with 324 runs at a strike rate of 118.68. Sam Hain and Labuschagne will be our top picks for the batters to watch out for.

Michael Neser’s form is a positive for the Heat side. Neser has picked 22 wickets this season at an economy of 8.45. Out of the 22, he has taken 11 in the last 4 games. He is our choice for the top bowler from the Heat. James Bazely and Matthew Kuhnemann will be the other two choices to finish the quota off 8 overs. The duo has taken 28 wickets so far at an economy of 7.75. Nesser is our choice for the top bowler.

Key Players: Sam Hain, Jimmy Pearson, Micheal Nesser.

Brisbane Heat Predicted Playing XI:

Josh Brown, Usman Khawaja (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Matt Renshaw, Sam Hain, Jimmy Peirson (wk), Michael Neser, James Bazley, Spencer Johnson, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Kuhnemann

Brisbane Heat Actual Playing XI:

Michael Neser, Josh Brown, Marnus Labuschagne, Matthew Kuhnemann, Matt Renshaw, Jimmy Peirson, Spencer Johnson, Usman Khawaja, James Bazley, Xavier Bartlett, Sam Hain

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The weather will be cloudy. Showers are expected throughout the day. The temperature will range between 17 and 22 The wind will flow from the south at 10-15 kmh. The pitch is considered good for pace in the first innings. For pacers, it offers a high bounce and swings at earlier stages. Out of 58 wickets fallen on this ground, 42 have been picked up by the pacers.

Venue Details

The Knockout will be held at Docklands Stadium, Melbourne, on 29th January from 1:45 pm IST. The venue holds a capacity of 48000 spectators and has hosted 12 ODIs, and five BBL games this season so far. 175 is the highest score at the Docklands Stadium this season.

Toss: To Bowl

In the 5 games played at the Showground Stadium, teams have chased the target on 4 occasions. Typically it is a low-scoring ground. The highest score registered here is 143 runs. Surprisingly, only 18 wickets have fallen in the second innings played here. The team winning the toss should bowl first.