Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith, Matt Renshaw and Marnus Labuschagne have all shone brightly in the Big Bash in the past few weeks, but none of them will be on the field when their teams face off on Thursday for a spot in the final.
Key points:
- Usman Khawaja top scored for the Heat in both finals so far, but will not see out the season
- The Heat and Sixers will play at the SCG on Thursday for a spot in the decider
- Meanwhile, the first Test against India starts a week later in Nagpur
Khawaja’s 59 off 47 at the top of the order led the Brisbane Heat’s winning run chase as they scored 3-164 to knock out the Melbourne Renegades at Docklands on Sunday.
It was his second straight match-winning knock in the finals series, after 94 off 55 to eliminate the Sydney Thunder, during which Labuschagne also blasted 73 off 48.
Recently recalled Test star Renshaw also contributed an unbeaten 27 off 13 against the Renegades to add to a healthy season, including 90 not out against the Melbourne Stars two weeks ago, when he hit the winning runs off the last ball.
Smith, meanwhile, was a revelation with the bat for the Sydney Sixers, finishing ninth in run-scoring for the season, despite being the only player in the top 21 who played fewer than 10 matches.
From just five games, he blasted 346 runs at a league-leading average of 86.50, finishing second in scoring for the Sixers behind Jordan Silk’s 353 from three times as many outings.
However, none of Smith, Khawaja, Labuschagne, Renshaw will be on the field at the SCG on Thursday when the Sixers and Heat play in “The Challenger”, to try to reach the final game of the season against the Perth Scorchers.
After missing the start of the season due to the home Test series against South Africa, all of them, plus Heat spinner Mitchell Swepson, will miss the end due to their duties as part of the Test squad to tour India.
Renshaw said the Heat squad was brimming with confidence, which will be vital as they prepare to lose so many key players.
“There’s a real great confidence in the group at the moment. It feels like everyone’s contributing and it feels like everyone’s doing a job at a certain time when needed,” Renshaw said.
“I’m really happy with the way the group’s going, because we want to be one of those teams in the future that are thereabouts every season and this is the part where you really test yourself when you lose your Test guys.”
The first Test starts next Thursday, February 9, in Nagpur, with three more to follow in Delhi, Dharamsala and Ahmedabad.
And while Smith, Khawaja and Labuschagne will be among the first names picked for all four Tests, there are no guarantees Renshaw and Swepson will play at all.
Swepson is in a race with emergent Victorian Todd Murphy for the second spin spot next to Nathan Lyon, while Renshaw could miss out if all-rounder Cameron Green recovers from his broken finger in time to play.
“Greeny’s a class player of spin anyway, so I don’t know if that’ll affect it too much, whether it’s me or him as a batting option,” Renshaw said of his potential selection on the dry pitches of India.
“We saw how well [Green] went in Sri Lanka. He’s a great player.
“So I’ve just got to go over there and just prepare as if I’m playing and, if I’m not playing, just be a really good 12th man and a good tourist.”
ABC/AAP