Hobart Hurricanes will go into Wednesday night’s Knockout final against Melbourne Stars without Jake Weatherald after the Test opener decided that, for now, first-class cricket matters more than another dash at the Big Bash.
Coach Jeff Vaughan explained the call on Tuesday afternoon. “Jake doesn’t feel ready to play this format of the game and wants to focus on red-ball cricket at the back-end of the summer,” Vaughan said. “It’s something we want to support Jake on. He’s had a huge Ashes year. To play a full summer of Test cricket is pretty arduous.” Vaughan added, “He wants to be best prepared for [Sheffield] Shield cricket … and ensure he is the No.1 opening batsman in Australia.”
It leaves the title-holders minus one of their headline recruits, signed from Adelaide Strikers only a few months ago. In his absence Hobart will again lean on pace pair Nathan Ellis and Rishad Hossain, their leading wicket-takers, while a replacement for departing leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed – now with England in Sri Lanka – will be chosen from “three or four” squad members, according to Vaughan.
Both sides arrive slightly bruised. Hobart squandered a comfortable chase against Brisbane Heat that would have sealed top spot. Twenty-four hours later the Stars fell to Perth Scorchers, meaning the clubs finished third and fourth respectively and must now navigate the sudden-death route.
Even so, Melbourne captain Marcus Stoinis was pragmatic. “Not going to lie, would have loved to win that,” he said. “[But] it’s a great position to be in, in the last game of the season to have that ability to finish top of the ladder. You just have to do it a different way now.”
Stoinis also stood by Glenn Maxwell, who has scraped only 67 runs at 13.40 this campaign. “These things happen to everyone, where you go through a rough patch,” he said. “He’s one person that comes out on top nearly every time. Hopefully he’s saving them for a big finals campaign.”
Several other Ashes squad members – notably Hobart all-rounder Beau Webster – have already returned to the BBL, but Weatherald’s decision underlines how congested the calendar remains. Australia’s next Test series is not scheduled until August, yet Shield cricket resumes in a fortnight, and selectors have made clear that early-March form will feed into winter tour planning.
The forecast could still have the final say: showers are tipped for Hobart on Wednesday evening. Under competition rules, a wash-out sends the higher-ranked Hurricanes through, a small perk for finishing above the Stars in the regular season – though both teams would prefer the argument be settled on the field.
