Hobart paceman to miss second straight game with hamstring concern with Australia's T20 World Cup campaign looming
Hurricanes skipper Ellis ruled out of Challenger
Hobart Hurricanes have suffered a huge blow just hours out from tonight's sudden-death finals clash with Sydney Sixers with captain Nathan Ellis ruled out of the match due to a hamstring issue.
Ellis, who missed Wednesday's thrilling rain-reduced three-run win over the Melbourne Stars with the same niggle, was hopeful of suiting up for the KFC BBL|15 Challenger against the Sixers after travelling to Sydney and being named in the Hurricanes' 14-player squad on Thursday.
But the 31-year-old fast bowler, who looms as a key part of Australia's T20 World Cup plans with the tournament kicking off in little more than a fortnight's time, has been pulled from Hobart's squad just hours before tonight's match at the SCG.
He has been replaced in the 14-player group by batter Charlie Wakim.
"Hobart Hurricanes can confirm that skipper Nathan Ellis will miss the remainder of the BBL season and the BBL|15 finals due to hamstring tightness," the club said in a statement on Friday afternoon.
"Ellis, who missed the Knockout on Wednesday night, was aiming to return for the final two matches of the BBL|15 finals but was unfortunately unable to overcome the injury."
Sixers squad for Challenger: Sean Abbott, Joel Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques (c), Daniel Hughes, Hayden Kerr, Ben Manenti, Mitch Perry, Josh Philippe, Lachlan Shaw, Jordan Silk, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc
Hurricanes squad for Challenger: Jackson Bird, Nikhil Chaudhary, Rishad Hossain, Chris Jordan, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Mitch Owen, Will Prestwidge, Billy Stanlake, Matthew Wade, Tim Ward, Beau Webster, Charlie Wakim, Mac Wright
Cricket Australia added the injury was not expected to have an impact on Ellis' World Cup campaign.
Ben McDermott is expected to stand-in as captain for Ellis, as he did against the Stars, while towering speedster Billy Stanlake looks set to retain his place after being brought into the XI for their last match.
The Hurricanes are also sweating on the fitness of English allrounder Chris Jordan, who played as a batter only in the Knockout due to an ankle complaint and the wet conditions in Hobart.
There are no such problems for the Sixers however with superstar quick Mitchell Starc named in their squad to face the Hurricanes after overcoming a heavy landing on his left shoulder in their loss to Perth on Tuesday.
The winner of tonight's Challenger will progress to face the Scorchers in the BBL|15 decider at Optus Stadium on Sunday.
BBL|15 finals schedule
Qualifier: Perth Scorchers beat Sydney Sixers by 48 runs
Knockout: Hobart Hurricanes beat Melbourne Stars by three runs (DLS method)
Challenger: Sydney Sixers v Hobart Hurricanes, SCG (Friday, January 23, 7:15pm AEDT)
Final: Perth Scorchers v winner of Challenger, Optus Stadium (Sunday, January 25, 7:15pm AEDT)
*A reserve day on Monday, January 26 (7:15pm AEDT) is available for the Final
KFC BBL|15 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
SCO
|
10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1.363 | 0 | 14 |
|
2
SIX
|
10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.605 | 0 | 13 |
|
3
HUR
|
10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.331 | 0 | 13 |
|
4
STA
|
10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.759 | 0 | 12 |
|
5
HEA
|
10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.431 | 0 | 10 |
|
6
STR
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -0.231 | 0 | 8 |
|
7
REN
|
10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -1.202 | 0 | 6 |
|
8
THU
|
10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 | -1.212 | 0 | 4 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points