Allrounder returns alongside Jhye Richardson for the Perth Scorchers clash with Melbourne Renegades
Aussie T20 skipper Marsh to play first BBL match in three years
Australia T20 captain Mitch Marsh is set to make his first Big Bash appearance in almost three years after being named in the Perth Scorchers squad to face Melbourne Renegades on Tuesday.
Marsh, who was dropped for the series-deciding fifth Test against India, last played for the Scorchers in their BBL|11 Final triumph over Sydney Sixers.
He will be available for the rest of the KFC BBL|14 home-and-away season, Cricket Australia have confirmed.
The 33-year-old allrounder is the Scorchers' second highest run-scorer of all-time with 1904 behind skipper Ashton Turner (2178) and provides additional firepower to their top order alongside Finn Allen and Cooper Connolly.
The Scorchers have also been boosted by the return of speedster Jhye Richardson who has missed three of their past four matches after being called up to the Australian squad for the final two Border-Gavaskar Trophy Tests against India.
Scorchers squad v Renegades: Ashton Turner (c), Ashton Agar, Finn Allen (New Zealand), Jason Behrendorff, Cooper Connolly, Sam Fanning, Aaron Hardie, Nick Hobson, Matt Kelly, Mitch Marsh, Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, Matthew Spoors, Andrew Tye
Ins: Mitch Marsh, Jhye Richardson. Outs: Matthew Hurst (omitted), Bryce Jackson
Richardson has been the Scorchers best with the ball in the three games he's played this season with six wickets at an average of 13.5 while operating at a superb economy rate of 6.75.
The right-armer has two three-wicket hauls already with 3-19 in the season opener against Melbourne Stars and 3-29 on New Year's Eve against Adelaide Strikers, which helped Perth win both of those matches.
Marsh was named in the official Team of the Tournament the last time he played in the Big Bash with 347 runs at 57.83 striking at more than 140 from eight appearances in BBL|11.
He then missed the entire BBL|12 season after undergoing ankle surgery and was unavailable for BBL|13 after winning back a spot in the Test team.
But after five single figure scores in his last five Test innings against India, Marsh was left out in favour of debutant Beau Webster at the SCG. Marsh will be out to rediscover his destructive best with the Scorchers to press his case for the Sri Lanka tour beginning later this month and tune up for next month's 50-over Champions Trophy tournament in Pakistan.
"If anything, hopefully (playing for the Scorchers) would free Mitch up," Perth coach Adam Voges said recently.
"International cricket is such high pressure and Test cricket and an Indian series just adds to that.
"We'd love to have him back in orange and see if he can smack a few balls around here."
Spinner Ashton Agar has again been named in the Scorchers 14-player squad as he continues his recovery from back spasms that forced him out of their last match against Sydney Thunder.
English wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Hurst has been left out however after managing 64 runs in five matches this season, and with Josh Inglis sidelined for the rest of the BBL season due to a calf injury, the Scorchers could look to New Zealand recruit Allen as an option to take the gloves.
Allen is the only overseas player still in the Scorchers' match-day squad after Keaton Jennings was left out last game, but they'll have a star-studded list to pick from regardless with nine of their 13 local players capped at international level.
Meanwhile, the return of Marsh sees replacement player Bryce Jackson drop out of the squad.
KFC BBL|14 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
SIX
|
6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.228 | 0 | 9 |
|
2
THU
|
6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.167 | 0 | 8 |
|
3
HUR
|
5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | -0.154 | 0 | 8 |
|
4
HEA
|
7 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | -0.518 | 0 | 7 |
|
5
SCO
|
7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.624 | 0 | 6 |
|
6
REN
|
7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.392 | 0 | 6 |
|
7
STR
|
7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.299 | 0 | 4 |
|
8
STA
|
7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.531 | 0 | 4 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points