Brendan McCullum of the Heat hits a six. Photo / Getty
Brendan McCullum of the Heat hits a six. Photo / Getty
Brendon McCullum has helped guide the Brisbane Heat to a resounding nine-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars in the Australian Twenty20 cricket competition.
The former Black Caps captain smashed 61 from 30 deliveries at the MCG as the Heat have chased down the Stars' 141 for seven with five overs to spare.
McCullum and Chris Lynn (63 not out) put on a 101-run stand in the victory with both batsmen hitting three sixes and seven fours. It was McCullum's 46th fifty in the T20 format.
The Heat are now equal third in the Big Bash League, while the Stars remain winless.
Glenn Maxwell savaged a "putrid" performance from the Melbourne Stars following their a third-straight defeat.'
With the returning Kevin Pietersen out for 30, Maxwell top-scored for the winless Stars with 50 off 39 balls.
But the allrounder made no secret of his frustration after the game, calling on the team's leaders to step up and describing his own failure to score freely as "embarrassing".
"We're lucky it's a longer competition this year where we've got at least seven more opportunities ... mathematically, we could still finish top, so I guess that's a positive.
"But the way we're going at the moment, we're not looking like going anywhere but bottom.
"We're playing terrible cricket. We're not probably playing together as a team ... we haven't even got close to putting together a full game, which is what you need to do in T20 cricket."
Skipper John Hastings was among the Stars' worst performers, making a duck and then dropping a sitter at mid-off in the first over to hand master-blaster Lynn a second life.
The Stars host crosstown rivals Melbourne Renegades on Saturday night and will be tempted to make changes to their line-up.
Young spinner Liam Bowe took the Stars' only wicket after earning a call-up against the Heat, while Seb Gotch and Jackson Coleman are among those waiting in the wings.
Maxwell said Hastings needed more support from his teammates but added that some change was necessary.
Brendon McCullum and Chris Lynn put on 101 for the opening wicket. Photo / Getty
"I'm not a part of the selection committee with this at all but we probably have to change something," Maxwell said.
