Kane Richardson is back bowling for the first time since injuring his back, but won't be available when the Strikers take on the Hobart Hurricanes in Adelaide.
The Australian limited-overs representative experienced back pain a week ago against Perth and was withdrawn from the Strikers' squad, with some fears he might miss the remainder of the BBL season.
However, the 25-year-old's return looks to be ahead of schedule after returning on Thursday to the Adelaide Oval nets.
"We are now aiming for a return sooner rather than later," Strikers sports scientist John Porter said.
"Kane will be having a light bowl today for the first time since his injury, and we'll assess his progress following the session."
The seventh-placed Strikers could desperately do with Richardson's firepower with the ball on Friday night at Adelaide Oval.
The Hurricanes had little difficulty cruising to a victory target of 144 in the teams' most-recent meeting, losing just two wickets in the process with 14 balls to spare.
The loss condemned the Strikers to just one win from four games, despite coming into the competition as one of the most-exciting prospects.
And captain Brad Hodge admits Friday's clash represents crunch time for the team.
"We need some wins," he said.
"It hasn't really gone to plan so far.
"We've played some good cricket amongst some average stuff so, if we can push the dead wood out and try and get back together and find some winning ways, that's important."
The Strikers will carry the same 13-man squad from Monday night into the clash.
However, the fifth-placed Hurricanes with two wins and two losses could be bolstered by the return of former Australian Test paceman Shaun Tait.
Tait, who has gone for a combined 90 runs in his past two games after starting the tournament with a bang, missed Monday's match with an elbow injury.
He has been named in the 13-man squad for Friday night, with a call on his fitness expected to be made closer to game time.
