Match overview
Melbourne Stars beat Sydney Sixers by 7 wickets in the Boxing Day BBL fixture at the Sydney Cricket Ground on 26 December 2025. Sixers were bowled out for 144, a total that looked below par from the moment Stars' openers reached 54 for 1 inside the powerplay. Stars cruised home on 145 for 3, with SB Harper named Player of the Match. The result was largely settled well before the final over, with Melbourne needing only 14 runs and losing just 1 wicket across the death phase.
The match swung decisively in the death overs of the first innings. Sixers had looked reasonably placed at 103 for 3 after 15 overs but then lost 7 wickets for 41 runs in the final five. That collapse compressed a potentially threatening total into one Stars could comfortably target.
Venue and conditions
The Sydney Cricket Ground has hosted 162 T20 matches, making it one of the most data-rich venues in Australian domestic cricket. The average first-innings score sits at 224, which puts Sixers' 144 significantly below par. The average second-innings score is 199, so even in chases the ground tends to produce runs freely.
Powerplay conditions at the SCG average 35 runs per innings. Stars produced 54 in that phase, a notable outperformance that set the tone. The average death-over contribution is 30 runs; Sixers managed 41 in the death but at the cost of 7 wickets, making those runs less useful than they might appear. The toss-field rate at the ground is 37%, meaning sides that win the toss more often choose to bat. Stars won the toss and opted to field, a less conventional choice at this venue, but one that paid off. The SCG's chase success rate of 47% across all T20 matches suggests outright batting-first advantage, which makes Stars' seven-wicket win against the grain of the historical numbers.
How to watch
The Big Bash League is available in the UK via Sky Sports Cricket. Matches can be streamed through Sky Go or on a day pass basis through NOW TV. Given that Sydney is eleven hours ahead of GMT during Australian summer, most BBL games air in the early hours of UK mornings. Check Sky Sports' schedule listings for exact broadcast times in GMT.
Recent form
Melbourne Stars arrived at the SCG in strong form, winning four of their five previous BBL matches. Their victims included Adelaide Strikers, Hobart Hurricanes (twice), and Melbourne Renegades. The only blip was a defeat to Sydney Thunder, which keeps them from a perfect recent sequence.
Sydney Sixers' situation was rather different. They had lost four consecutive matches before this game, going down to Adelaide Strikers, Perth Scorchers, Sydney Thunder, and Hobart Hurricanes. Their sole recent win came against Sydney Thunder, and even that was sandwiched between defeats. A fifth loss in six games and a margin of 7 wickets will sharpen focus on where Sixers need to improve, particularly their death-overs batting, which conceded far too many wickets in the final phase here. For Melbourne Stars, the win consolidates a run of form that makes them one of the competition's more credible contenders as the tournament progresses.