BBL 2018-19: Michael Vaughan backs Melbourne Stars' captain Glenn Maxwell to play all formats

Every fan gets excited to see their favourite team win a game or a tournament. Former England captain Michael Vaughan is no exception as he was extremely pleased to see the team he supported making the finals of the Big Bash League (BBL) 8 and continued to back them to overcome the final hurdle and lift their maiden title as well.

The team that Vaughan backed in Australia’s domestic T20 tournament was Melbourne Stars who stormed into the finals by defeating Hobart Hurricanes by 6 wickets in the first semi-final played at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.

The Hurricanes finished as the table toppers among eight teams in the group stage but were thrashed by the Stars who qualified for the last four as the fourth team. It may be mentioned here that the Hurricanes had thumped the Stars in both their league games by 6 wickets and 59 runs, respectively, but it was the Stars who had the final laugh when it mattered in the knock-outs.

The 44-year-old Vaughan said in a tweet that he is ‘pretty sure’ that he had backed the Stars to win the BBL this year. The other semi-final to be played on Friday features Melbourne Renegades and former champions Sydney Sixers. The final will be played on February 17. The Stars had played the final of the 2015 season but lost to Sydney Thunder by 3 wickets.

Maxwell’s knock saw Stars going into final

Vaughan also praised Stars’ captain Glenn Maxwell for his match-winning knock of 43 not out in just 33 balls during which he belted four boundaries. He came in at No.5 when the Stars had some work to do but ensured that he remained till the end to guide his side to their second final.

Maxwell also opened the bowling and conceded 22 runs in three overs without getting any wicket. Vaughan backed the Victorian as an all-format player for Australia and wanted him to bat higher up in the order in the 50-overs format. The right-arm batting all-rounder last played for Australia in the three-game ODI series against India last month.

Here is Maxwell’s tweet

Pretty sure I backed the @StarsBBL to Win the Big Bash !!! #Justsaying …….. also @Gmaxi_32 is a serious player that Australia need to get playing in all formats & higher up the order in the ODI … #BigBash

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) February 14, 2019

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