A team hat-trick has helped consign the Melbourne Stars to a poor total of 9-146 in front of a record crowd in their Big Bash League match against the Melbourne Renegades at the MCG.

Stars captain Shane Warne, who did not face a ball despite being forced to the batting crease for the first time in the BBL, admitted it was a disappointing score, saying 175 would have been par on a pitch he described as a “belter”.

He would have been much happier with the crowd total, which tallied more than 46,000 to better the Twenty20 domestic record of 43,125 for a Victoria-Tasmania game at the same venue almost three years ago.

The Renegades, who will sew up top spot with a game to spare if they win, gave the Stars some early lives, missing a chance to run out opener Luke Wright, who top-scored with 29 off 22 balls, and dropping a catch off No.3 Glenn Maxwell (three).

But the Stars still lost frequent wickets against some tight Renegades bowling, with seamer Darren Pattinson (2-12 off three overs) and Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan (1-27) impressive.

Left-arm medium-pacer Will Sheridan took three wickets, including two in two balls in the last over, those scalps coming immediately after a run out.

It was an eventful over, as allrounder James Faulkner had smashed the first two balls for six.

The innings also included some controversy.

The Renegades’ West Indian allrounder Marlon Samuels, whose bowling action was questioned by Brisbane Heat coach Darren Lehmann earlier in the competition and who was also involved in a heated exchange with Adelaide Strikers coach Darren Berry last week, was again in the thick of it.

Brad Hodge (11) was given out caught by Samuels in the third over, after initially standing his ground because he was unsure the catch was taken cleanly.

Replays – not available to the umpires – were inconclusive.

Stars batsman David Hussey gestured unhappily towards Samuels when he arrived at the crease later in the innings, although it was unclear why.