McCullum will miss the Heat’s match against the Stars
Image courtesy of: Zimbio
Brisbane Heat captain Brendon McCullum has been suspended for one match after maintaining a slow over-rate during his side’s loss to the Perth Scorchers on Wednesday.
McCullum will miss his side’s pivotal clash against the Melbourne Stars on Tuesday as it was his second over-rate offence in the ongoing edition of the Big Bash League (BBL), with the other coming against the Hobart Hurricanes on December 30.
As a result of this, the Heat have confirmed that Joe Burns will lead the team against the Stars.
According to the rules, each side is given 90 minutes to bowl their 20 overs, but the Heat took 96 minutes to do it on Wednesday, which equated to them being one over short.
The Heat had 14 days to appeal against the decision, but decided not to.
“The Heat have shown that their style of attacking, exciting cricket really resonates with the fans and viewers all over the world and so it is disappointing for them that they will miss seeing one of the game’s best in action in Melbourne next week,” Queensland Cricket Chief Executive Officer Max Walters said. “It is a shame but we accept those are the competition rules we are playing under and reminds us that we can continue to improve in all facets of the game.
“We’re confident the team will give a good account of itself against the Stars and continue to play bright, attacking T20 cricket.
“We’re sure Brendon and the team will rebound from this setback and finish the competition strongly.”
Each Heat player has also been fined $1000, but that was reduced to $500 as the franchise decided not to appeal.
When asked about the slow over-rate after the game against the Scorchers, McCullum told Channel Ten Sport: “I think we were a little bit late today with it but it’s pretty difficult, you kind of get penalised for taking wickets.
“Overall, you’ve got 35,000 people turning up to every game, ultimately the product is going outstanding and we finished 10 minutes early any way. Let’s see what happens but hopefully I’ll be right for next game.”
However, it is likely that the Heat will appeal, especially as delays were caused by the concussion Scorchers wicketkeeper-batsman Sam Whiteman sustained and the lengthy period of time the third umpire took to deliberate whether Nathan Reardon had taken a catch without stepping over the boundary.
“I think there were some inconsistencies in that (the first over-rate penalty) but let’s wait and see,” McCullum said. “If you do get suspended, you get suspended and that’s how it is.
“I hope not because I think we’re bringing a great brand of cricket to the table at the moment.”