Kevin Pietersen has led the Melbourne Stars to a thumping 46-run win over the Renegades in their Big Bash derby.
Pietersen belted 73 from 46 balls as the Stars posted 7-200 at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night, setting the scene for the emphatic victory.
Faced with an imposing chase, Renegades captain Aaron Finch came out firing.
Finch belted 27 from 13 balls but he and fellow opener Sunil Narine both fell to Scott Boland in the fourth over, leaving the Renegades on shaky ground.
Veteran Cameron White added a composed 38 but found little support, with Stars spinners Adam Zampa and Michael Beer tearing through the middle-order as the Renegades fell well short on 9-154 from their full 20 overs.
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Zampa took BBL career-best figures of 3-19, while Beer finished with 3-32.
But it was Pietersen's swashbuckling knock which did the most damage for the Stars.
The former England Test star was in no mood to waste time, belting the first of three sixes from his first ball faced.
"I'm in boundary mode at the moment," Pietersen declared.
"As long as I pick the right options, I should be okay."
Pietersen's ninth half-century from just 20 BBL innings came to an end when he was caught off the bowling of Narine in the 17th over.
Renegades quick James Pattinson was expensive in his first match back from a hamstring injury but looked to have lost none of his explosiveness, finishing with 3-44.
Pattinson reached 145km/hr with his third delivery and had Stars opener Luke Wright caught at mid-on two balls later.
But it was Wright's partner Rob Quiney who felt the most pain, copping a menacing 146km/hr delivery from Pattinson which cannoned into his box and left him doubled over.
Quiney wasted no time seeking revenge, belting three sixes during an entertaining 51 off 30 balls, while David Hussey chipped in with 27 off 11 balls.
Stars allrounder Glenn Maxwell was full of praise for Pietersen after the pair shared a 65-run partnership.
"He's in rare touch, isn't he? He looks unbelievable at the crease," Maxwell said.
"For a guy who hasn't really played much this year ... to play as well as he has tonight, it just shows the superstar quality that he is."
Renegades captain Finch was frustrated with his inability to emulate Pietersen and follow through on a promising start.
"Kev's the type of player that once he gets on a roll, he's hard to stop," Finch said.
"When someone at the top gets 50, you can bat around them and guys can take risks. I'm not really allowing the side to do that at the moment."
