Handscomb straight in as Stars opt to bowl in BBL|14 Knockout

Peter Handscomb has been rushed straight into the Melbourne Stars XI for tonight's do-or-die Knockout final against Sydney Thunder.

Stars skipper Marcus Stoinis opted to bowl first at ENGIE Stadium as the Thunder also brought in Ollie Davies, with Hugh Weibgen elevated to open alongside their skipper David Warner with Sam Konstas on Test duties.

Weibgen will be the sixth Thunder opener this season as they try to cover the loss of Konstas and Cameron Bancroft to a season-ending shoulder injury.

Thunderstorms swept through the western Sydney region during the late afternoon and the pitch was covered right up until the bat flip, and Thunder fans will be hoping any rain holds off after losing the last final they hosted in BBL|12 via the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method.

Sydney Thunder XI: David Warner (c), Hugh Weibgen, Matthew Gilkes, Sam Billings (wk), Ollie Davies, Chris Green, George Garton, Nathan McAndrew, Tom Andrews, Wes Agar, Tanveer Sangha

 

Ins: Tanveer Sangha, Ollie Davies, Wes Agar. Outs: Dan Christian, Sam Konstas (Test squad), Mohammad Hasnain

 

Melbourne Stars XI: Sam Harper (wk), Tom Rogers, Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis (c), Glenn Maxwell, Hilton Cartwright, Tom Curran, Usama Mir, Mark Steketee, Doug Warren, Peter Siddle

 

Ins: Peter Handscomb, Doug Warren. Outs: Beau Webster (Test squad), Joel Paris

Handscomb was only signed to the Stars' list yesterday as a replacement for Beau Webster, who has joined the Australian squad in the UAE ahead of their two-Test tour of Sri Lanka starting next week.

Webster hit 51 off 31 balls in the Stars last match to help the club snatch a finals spot with their fifth win in a row.

Handscomb's proficiency against spin has seen him come straight into the line-up for tonight's final with spinners proving much tougher to score off at ENGIE Stadium this season with an economy rate of 6.69 compared to 7.92 of their fast-bowling counterparts.

Both sides have banked heavily on spin for tonight's clash with the Stars recalling left-armer Doug Warren to partner Usama Mir and potentially Glenn Maxwell, with left-arm quick Joel Paris making way.

Tanveer Sangha returns for the Thunder to partner Tom Andrews and Chris Green, while fast bowler Wes Agar has been called up in place of Pakistan speedster Mohammad Hasnain and veteran Dan Christian.

The winner of tonight's match keeps their KFC BBL|14 dream alive and will progress to the Challenger final against Sydney Sixers at the SCG on Friday.

The Stars drastically turned their season around to qualify for the finals – after losing their first five games of the season, they won their next five to enter the knockout stage as the form side.

The Thunder, who beat the Stars in the final to win their sole men's Big Bash title in BBL|05, have overcome their own adversity, shaking off the losses of Bancroft, Daniel Sams and Nic Maddinson to season-ending injuries to secure third spot.

KFC BBL|14 finals schedule

Qualifier: Hobart Hurricanes beat Sydney Sixers by 12 runs

Knockout: Sydney Thunder v Melbourne Stars, Engie Stadium (Wednesday, January 22, 7.30pm AEDT)

Challenger: Sydney Sixers v winner of Knockout, SCG (Friday, January 24, 7.15pm AEDT)

Final: Hobart Hurricanes v winner of Challenger, Ninja Stadium (Monday, January 27, 7.15pm AEDT)