Handscomb to weigh up Big Bash club switch

The Melbourne Stars' last remaining link to their original Big Bash squad, Peter Handscomb, could be cut with the batsman to dip his toes in the open market.

The Hobart Hurricanes are understood to be among multiple BBL clubs interested in signing Handscomb when the contract embargo lifts in the coming weeks ahead of the tenth season of the BBL.

A salary-cap squeeze is believed to be a major impediment to the Stars re-signing Handscomb. The likes of Marcus Stoinis, Ben Dunk, Adam Zampa and Nic Maddinson all hold multi-year deals with the club.

The embargo dictates that players are not yet allowed to sign new contracts while clubs are also waiting to learn whether an overseas player draft, which has considerable salary-cap implications for teams, will be held for the first time.

"I'm currently out of contract and given everything that is going on in the world … there is a lot up in the air," Handscomb told cricket.com.au. "I'm waiting to see, once the dust settles, what's happening in the world and where I can get a contract."

It is also understood the Stars are eager to have the Pakistani pace sensation they unearthed last summer, Haris Rauf, back in green this season, but the finer details of the draft and how that could affect clubs retaining overseas players they have previously had on their books are yet to be confirmed.

The Hurricanes, meanwhile, are on the hunt for middle-order reinforcements with veteran George Bailey retiring and South African David Miller no longer at the club after an underwhelming first season.

The fact Handscomb is currently on the outer of the Australian team in all three formats means he could be available for the entire BBL season. His last international game was the semi-final of last year's ODI World Cup.

Handcomb has played 51 games for the Stars, scoring 834 runs at 27.80, and captained the team on one occasion last season.

He is the last remaining player from the Stars’ original squad for the league’s first season back in 2011 having joined as a 20-year-old alongside the likes of Shane Warne, Cameron White and George Bailey.

Undoubtedly his high point, individually, in the Big Bash came when he struck a stunning unbeaten century against the Perth Scorchers at the MCG in 2015, hitting a six to propel the Stars to an unlikely final-over win.

His potential departure would leave the Stars looking for more from the likes of Dunk and Maddinson, who averaged 11.87 and 10.21 respectively last summer.

The club has a phenomenal record in the regular season of the BBL, only missing the finals once, but has never won the title. They finished as runners-up for the third time in February when the Sydney Sixers won a rain-affected decider at the SCG.