Melbourne Stars have signed New Zealand opener Finn Allen on a three-year deal for BBL|16, ending his two-season stint with Perth Scorchers. Allen, 27, becomes the twelfth player on new head coach Cameron White’s 18-member roster for the upcoming campaign.
Allen had been the Scorchers’ standout performer in BBL|15, scoring a tournament-leading 466 runs and earning the Simon Katich Medal as the competition’s best overseas player. Perth could not match the Stars’ offer, and Allen has opted to move to Melbourne for the start of BBL|16.
He joins a Stars line-up that already includes white-ball specialists Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis. Melbourne Stars are the only franchise in the competition yet to win a Big Bash title.
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How did Allen perform during his time at Perth Scorchers?
Allen arrived at Perth Scorchers as the club’s first BBL pre-signing under a rule that allowed every club to secure one international before the overseas player draft, a concept that has since been scrapped by league officials for both the men’s and women’s competitions. His first season in Perth was difficult, producing 181 runs across 10 innings.
He responded strongly in BBL|15, hitting the most sixes in a single Big Bash season with 38 maximums and earning selection in the BBL|15 Team of the Tournament. His best knock came against the Renegades at Marvel Stadium, where he scored 101 from 53 deliveries. He also contributed 49 and 36 in the Scorchers’ finals matches as Perth claimed an unprecedented sixth men’s title.
Since the BBL|15 triumph, Allen has remained active across global T20 competitions. He struck an unbeaten century from 33 balls in New Zealand’s T20 World Cup semi-final win over South Africa, with the Black Caps reaching the final. He then scored 349 runs for Kolkata Knight Riders in his maiden Indian Premier League stint, including a century against Delhi Capitals. A fourth season with the San Francisco Unicorns followed, before he played nine games for runners-up Trent Rockets in the Hundred.
“The Stars are a powerhouse team in this competition, so it’s going to be a lot of fun playing for them. They’ve already got a huge fanbase and they’re only getting bigger, and I can’t wait to be a part of that. I think all cricketers love playing at the MCG, so to be able to call that my home ground now is really exciting,” said Allen as quoted by cricket.com.au.
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What does Allen’s arrival mean for the Melbourne Stars’ BBL|16 squad?
Allen fills the twelfth spot in Cameron White’s 18-man BBL|16 roster and is the Stars’ second men’s signing since the league lifted a contracting embargo that had been in place from February. Test-capped off-spinner Todd Murphy was added to the squad on Friday, joining leg-spinner Mitch Swepson in the bowling group. England’s Overton brothers, Jamie and Craig, have also been linked with the Stars in recent days. The Stars now have a top-order combination of Allen, Maxwell and Stoinis, giving them considerable firepower at the top and middle of their batting line-up for BBL|16.
