'Cooked' Renshaw praises teammate for ramp idea

Matthew Renshaw was hailed for 'nerves of steel' for his audacious last-ball ramp that sealed Brisbane Heat's victory at the MCG on Monday night, but revealed it was tailender Matthew Kuhnemann's idea to play the shot.

Needing four to win off the final ball, Renshaw pulled out the ramp for the first time in his 56-ball innings to score a boundary that kept the Heat's season alive with a three-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars.

While a diving effort at the boundary couldn't save the Stars, they were left to rue falling foul of the BBL's innings timer, triggering an in-game over rate penalty.

Teams must start their final over within 79 minutes or be forced to bring an extra fielder inside the circle, which may well have removed the ramp as an option for Renshaw on that final ball.

"Yeah, the four (fielders) out was a blessing for us," Renshaw conceded after the match.

The Heat had learned earlier in the tournament to keep a close eye on the innings clock, having only narrowly avoided the in-game penalty themselves.

"Fortunately, we made them take time, we put them under pressure with certain bowlers and certain plans, so that was good," the left-hander said.

Renshaw, who finished unbeaten on 90, admitted he was "pretty cooked" after the innings as the 26-year-old initially struggled to lay bat on ball in the final over, which Brisbane began needing nine runs.

"I tried to hit the absolute living daylights out of the first five (balls) and that didn't work so Matty Kuhnemann, the left arm orthodox, came down and told me to ramp it," Renshaw told reporters after the match.

"I know it's his go-to shot, so he thought it was a good idea."

It wasn't the only good advice Kuhnemann provided, who offered a calming influence for Renshaw.

"'Kuhney' was cool calm collected out there, he was awesome ... He probably should've got man of the match," Renshaw enthused.

"He came down at the start of the over and goes, 'mate, first three balls we won't run'.

"And then (after a few dot balls) I thought I was the only one who could go, so I said we'll only run if it's a two and he just said, 'mate, stable base watch the ball'.

"Fortunately, it paid off, but as I hit it, I couldn't tell how far it had gone. I knew I got it pretty well and fortunately, it just rolled over that rope ... I don't know if I was coming back for three (to force a Super Over)."

The Heat's fourth win of the season kept them within touching distance of making the final five and Renshaw warned Brisbane have yet to hit top gear.

"I feel like we haven't really clicked yet ... like sometimes our bowling is 90 per cent there, sometimes our batting is 90 percent," Renshaw said.

"We just don't feel like we've put everything together and the table is really tight in there now."

Brisbane quick Michael Neser is also hitting his straps, having claimed a career-best 4-25 despite conceding 14 runs to Nick Larkin in the final over of the Stars' innings.

"It felt as good as the ball has come out all tournament," Neser said, adding that every game was a "must-win" for the Heat now.

"But that last over was a bit of a killer. It was one of those wickets the longer you're out there the better you felt, it was a hard wicket to come out and slog on, and Larko batted well to get to that position. "

The Heat's final three games are against the Hurricanes, Stars and Hurricanes again, the final two of which are 1.40pm AEDT starts, which Neser said added an element of danger.

"We've found that sometimes the ball can hold up in the day, so your slower balls and spinners come into play a bit more," he said.

"That worked against us in the game against the Thunder where we batted first and then bowled on a wicket that dewed up a bit.

"Day games can be tricky to bowl or bat first, so lucky I don't have to make that call, that's Usman (Khawaja's) problem."