Hilton Cartwright has overcome a neck scare to line up for Melbourne Stars against Brisbane on Wednesday
Maxwell nears return as Johnson misses Heat opener
Glenn Maxwell is edging closer to a Big Bash return but will miss his second game of the season after Melbourne Stars named a 14-player squad to face Brisbane Heat at the MCG on Wednesday.
The Stars believe Maxwell is more likely for Friday's clash with the Strikers in Adelaide as he continues his recovery from the hamstring strain he suffered fielding for Australia last month.
Hilton Cartwright has been named after overcoming a neck scare in their season opening loss to Perth Scorchers, with the club also signing in-form batter Blake Macdonald as a replacement player as cover for Maxwell.
Melbourne Stars squad v Heat: Marcus Stoinis (c), Hilton Cartwright, Joe Clarke, Brody Couch, Tom Curran, Sam Harper, Campbell Kellaway, Blake Macdonald, Hamish McKenzie, Jonathan Merlo, Adam Milne, Joel Paris, Tom Rogers, Beau Webster
The Heat meanwhile will be without star paceman Spencer Johnson who has failed to recover from a toe injury that flared up after bowling 45 overs for South Australia in a Sheffield Shield match last month.
The reigning champions will also be without Australia-capped allrounder Michael Neser who could be sidelined until mid-January with a hamstring injury.
New Zealand recruit Colin Munro will skipper the Heat with regular captain Usman Khawaja and last season's stand-in championship skipper Nathan McSweeney on Test duties, but Munro will be assessed before play after reporting tightness in his hamstring during training on Tuesday afternoon at the MCG.
Despite the early challenges to their title defence, leg-spinner Mitch Swepson believes the Heat have options to cover the loss of their star quicks.
"I don't think Spencer's is a major injury so I'm assuming he'll be back sometime in the next couple of games," Swepson said at the MCG today.
"We've got some options; young quicks Tom Whitney and Tom Straker come into the squad, and we've got Will Prestwidge and Jack Wildermuth.
"We're going to be tested with our depth this season and it's good that we've got some depth there.
"We managed to play pretty much the same XI through most of the tournament last season, which is almost unheard of.
"You need a bit of luck sometimes in these tournaments and we certainly got a bit of that last year without any injuries.
"Creating a bit of depth this season (has been a focus) and getting some young guys in that might get an opportunity throughout the tournament and leaning on those more experienced guys that have been around for a bit, so it's a good mixture in our squad."
The Stars have made three changes after their first up six-wicket loss to the Scorchers with fast bowler Joel Paris and batter Campbell Kellaway named in their 14-player squad in place of veteran Peter Siddle and emerging spinner Doug Warren.
Austin Anlezark also makes way for fellow replacement player Macdonald.
Stars' Kiwi speedster Adam Milne said it was a huge relief for the squad to get a message following Sunday's match that Cartwright's scans were all clear.
"He's here at training to have a run around and see how the neck and the body feels after the other night," Milne said.
Englishman Joe Clarke will play his final game for BBL|14 with countryman Ben Duckett set to join the Stars squad for Friday's match against the Strikers after England's 2-1 Test series victory of New Zealand.
KFC BBL|14 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
SCO
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.438 | 0 | 2 |
|
2
SIX
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.847 | 0 | 2 |
|
3
STR
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
4
HEA
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
5
HUR
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
6
THU
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
7
REN
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -0.847 | 0 | 0 |
|
8
STA
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -1.438 | 0 | 0 |
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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