Head given all-clear to play in semi

ADELAIDE Strikers captain Travis Head has been released from national duties to play in tonight’s Big Bash League semi-final against the Melbourne Renegades.

Head expected to miss the game at Adelaide Oval after being selected in Australia’s Twenty20 squad. The Australians play New Zealand in Sydney tomorrow in the opening game of the tri-series, which also involves England. ney tomorrow to join the Australian squad.

His Strikers teammates Alex Carey and Billy Stanlake will not play in the BBL semi because of their selection in the Australian squad. The Strikers will call on inexperienced players to replace form batsman-keeper Carey and express quick Stanlake.

“Hopefully losing a couple of players might just upset their team balance,” Renegades captain Cameron White said yesterday.

Adelaide will summon 22year-old wicketkeeper Harry Nieslen, the son of former Australian coach Tim, for his BBL debut. And inexperienced paceman Wes Agar is also in the Strikers’ selection frame.

“The big thing for new players coming in, especially inexperienced ones, is just dealing with the pressure and what we have to throw at them,” White said. “Once they get out in the middle, we’ll see if we can exploit them.

“How do we do it, it’s prob- ably just getting the match-ups right — that is pretty much what T20 is about these days, making sure you get the right people playing against each other at the right time.”

The Strikers and Renegades are seeking a spot in their first BBL final — and both have squandered chances before.

The Renegades topped the table in 2012-13 only to lose their semi-final. And the Strikers finished top in 2014-15 and 2015-16 but lost both those semi-finals.