Glenn Maxwell’s all-round brilliance keeps Melbourne Stars alive in the BBL

Glenn Maxwell belted out another BBL masterclass that kept the Melbourne Stars very much alive in the current edition of the tournament while Brisbane Heat was shown the exit after defeat to the resurgent Stars.

Maxwell powered an all-round display that was laced with Joe Clarke’s merciless hitting that helped the Stars to keep their hope of the finals alive.

Batting first, the Heat could manage 149 runs from their quota of 20 overs. Maxwell continued his onslaught with the willow after his emphatic showdown with the cherry in his hand.

The victory over Brisbane Heat propelled Melbourne Stars to the fifth position where they were left adrift of the fourth and the fifth position by two and four points which are currently occupied by the Adelaide Strikers and Hobart Hurricanes respectively.

Clarke and Maxwell came together to brew a tempest that blew away the Heat completely. Clarke managed to rack up a 36-ball-62 while Maxwell smashed a 30-ball-37 before being removed by the Heat bowlers.

With very little to do, Marcus Stoinis and Hilton Cartwright joined forces to write off Heat completely as they were relentless and chased down the stipulated total with 37 balls to spare.

The duo of Stoinis and Cartwright smoked five maximums between them from the 17 balls that they played. Earlier while bowling, Maxwell plucked off a ripper mid-air to dismiss Sam Heazlett off the bowling of Nathan Coulter-Nile. In fact, such was the magnitude of the grab, that Maxwell covered his mouth in disbelief.

The Heat ran riot in the powerplay with Chris Lynn dictating the proceedings. That is when Glenn Maxwell arrived to the bowling attack and claimed the all-important scalp of Lynn, also opening the floodgates in the process.