Me not getting a contract..: Marcus Stoinis sends message to Cricket Australia over contract snub after sensational century against CSK

Marcus Stoinis made sure to send a message to Cricket Australia over the contract snub after scoring a sensational match-winning century for Lucknow Super Giants against Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. 

At a venue where batters usually struggle due to the sluggishness of the pitch, Marcus Stoinis came up with one of the best knocks in the history of the IPL. He single-handedly powered LSG to a six-wicket win over the defending champions in their own backyard.

Asked to bat first, CSK posted a huge total of 210/4 in the allotted 20 overs. Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad starred with the bat for the hosts, scoring an unbeaten 108 runs from 60 balls. Shivam Dube also played a crucial knock for the champions, smashing 66 runs from just 27 balls with the help of three fours and seven sixes.

In reply, LSG were reeling at 33 for 2 inside the powerplay and were looking destined to suffer a loss. However, Marcus Stoinis, who was promoted to number three, waged a lone battle and went on to pull off a miraculous win for his side. He smashed an unbeaten 124 runs from just 63 balls to take his side over the finishing line with three balls remaining.

Marcus Stoinis on the contract snub:

After the match-winning knock, Marcus Stoinis made sure to make his stand clear over not getting the central contract from Cricket Australia. Last month, the CA announced the central contracts for 2024-25 season and Marcus Stoinis was a notable absentee from the 23-player list.

However, the veteran allrounder has made it clear that he is not disappointed over the snub but is still keen to ply his trade for Australia. It is the first time that he spoke about the snub publicly. After the match, he was asked whether he was trying to prove a point and in reply, he said:

"I've got a great relationship with the [Australia] coach [Andrew McDonald]. Me not getting a contract, I knew that a while ago. I think it is great to give younger kids a crack and let them take my spot. I'm absolutely fine with that on the contract list.

"But on the playing front, obviously want to make sure that I'm there and that's also why it's so lucky for us and for me particularly to have this competition [the IPL], that's why I love it so much," he added.