Lynn primed for Big Bash return

Brisbane Heat superstar Chris Lynn is confident of making his long-awaited return to cricket against Sydney Thunder on Wednesday night at the Gabba.

Despite undergoing a shoulder reconstruction in July that was initially forecast to keep him sidelines until the end of January, Lynn had been hopeful of returning for the Heat's opener against Melbourne Stars last week.

However it was a hamstring niggle that had coaching staff erring on the side of caution for their talismanic batsman, and that remained the case for the defeat to Melbourne Renegades last night.

Now, however, Lynn is poised to re-enter the KFC Big Bash, bringing with him all the firepower that has seen him smash 53 sixes and win two Player-of-the-Tournament awards over the past two BBL campaigns.

"It's exciting. I haven't quite got the 100 per cent nod yet but I'm pretty confident I'll turn out on Wednesday night against the Sydney Thunder," he said.

"It's been a long time coming, there's a few nerves there, but I think it's just like riding a bike – once you're out there, get off the mark and it's straight back into business.

"I'll probably train tomorrow and Boxing Day and make sure I tick off the final boxes … make sure the support staff and coaching staff are happy and go from there."

Lynn said the time away from the game has been difficult to deal with, particularly within cricket season and as he has continued to chalk up the hours in the gym and on the physio's bench.

"It's been killing me to be honest. I'm not a great watcher of cricket, so to see the boys out there playing, it's hard sitting on the sidelines," he said.

"I've been trying to do everything I can to get back out there. I'm confident the body will hold together, not just for the rest of the tournament but for future tournaments.

"I haven't had a great run of it the past four years, and it's been frustrating. The physical side hasn't been great but the mental side has been killing me more than anything. So hopefully I don't have to see much of the physio anymore."

The Heat are one from two after beating the Stars and losing to the Renegades, and even in the early stages of the tournament a win on Wednesday night looms as critical to their hopes of a top-four berth.

"We've got a jam-packed schedule early in the tournament, so if we can get some momentum now leading into the back-end when we can freshen up a little bit, that's pretty important," Lynn said.

"If we play decent, we'll win. If we play good, we'll blow teams off the park.

"We made the semis last year and I think this year our squad is even better, so there's no reason we can't go all the way."