Melbourne Renegades are last in the BBL and have received a massive blow with two of their overseas players ruled out for the rest of the season
Hosein returns but 'Gades lose two imports for rest of BBL|13
Melbourne Renegades have added West Indian spinner Akeal Hosein to their KFC BBL|13 squad after losing imports Joe Clarke and Mujeeb Ur Rahman for the rest of the season.
It's quickly becoming a nightmare campaign for the Renegades who are 1-5 and at the bottom of the ladder after Tuesday night's derby loss to the Stars, who are on a four-game winning streak.
Clarke has a high-grade quad tear with the English opener to be sidelined for at least three weeks, while Mujeeb has returned home because of a contract dispute with the Afghanistan Cricket Board.
The wet conditions resulted in a tacky MCG wicket that was spin-friendly and with Mujeeb unavailable the Renegades turned to Jon Wells, who hasn't bowled in the BBL for 11 years, for an over of leg-spin.
"We missed Mujeeb dearly ... we probably needed two spinners (Mujeeb and Adam Zampa) out there," acting captain Will Sutherland said.
Sutherland confirmed after the match Mujeeb wouldn't play again this season, which would provide "good opportunities for a few guys", with a Renegades spokesperson adding: "Mujeeb's time with the Melbourne Renegades in BBL|13 has unfortunately come to an end.
"Due to a recent change in his NOC (No Objection Certificate), his tournament ended earlier than anticipated and he flew home this evening."
Hosein, who replaces Mujeeb in the club's 18-player squad for BBL|13, took 13 wickets from nine matches for the Renegades last season with a superb economy rate of 6.46.
The 30-year-old arrives in Australia as the world's third-ranked T20I bowler following a rapid rise since his debut for the West Indies in 2021.
The left-armer will be available for the Renegades' finals two games of BBL|13 regular season beginning with the return Melbourne derby at Marvel Stadium on January 13.
"Akeal made a real impact with our team last year … he bowled economically including in the Powerplays and was a wicket-taker for us too," Renegades general manager James Rosengarten said.
Adding to the Renegades' woes, captain Nic Maddinson remains sidelined because of form, while veteran Aaron Finch also is out of the line up.
Top draft pick Quinton de Kock will also play his last game of BBL|13 against the Hurricanes on Thursday night as he heads home to join Durban Super Giants with the SA20 league getting underway on January 11.
"We need to get some wins for our fans, first and foremost, and build some momentum," Sutherland said.
While it's still mathematically possible for the club to qualify for the finals, they would need to win their remaining three games and have a remarkable run of results fall their way.
KFC BBL|13 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
HEA
|
10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.972 | 0 | 16 |
|
2
SIX
|
10 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.339 | 0 | 14 |
|
3
SCO
|
10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.725 | 0 | 13 |
|
4
STR
|
10 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0.331 | 0 | 11 |
|
5
HUR
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -0.268 | 0 | 8 |
|
6
STA
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -1.051 | 0 | 8 |
|
7
REN
|
10 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | -0.288 | 0 | 6 |
|
8
THU
|
10 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | -0.652 | 0 | 4 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points
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