Nic Maddinson's suspected serious knee injury has compounded the Melbourne Renegades' woes after they suffered a fourth consecutive BBL defeat.
The Renegades copped a five-wicket loss to the red-hot Perth Scorchers at Marvel Stadium on Sunday, continuing their slide after a positive 3-0 start to the season.
Aaron Finch's 65 off 48 had given the home side a sniff, steering them to 6-155 from their 20 overs.
But import opener Faf du Plessis (39 off 29) and Cam Bancroft (46 off 32) laid a solid platform for Perth and leading run scorer Josh Inglis (47 off 34) all but got the visitors over the line.
Inglis was out lbw to Will Sutherland (1-32) in the final over before Nick Hobson hit the winning run.
The Scorchers reached 5-156 with two balls to spare, despite the efforts of Renegades quick Kane Richardson (2-21).
It was Perth's fourth straight win, firming up their spot at the top of the table.
Maddinson's batting form slump continued when he was out for a first-ball duck, giving him a total of just three runs in his last five innings.
His day got worse when was hurt while fielding during the second over of the Scorchers' run chase, twisting his left leg as he turned to throw the ball.
The 31-year-old immediately slumped to the turf and was assessed for several minutes before being driven off the field.
The Renegades are yet to determine the full extent of the injury, with Maddinson set to be sent for scans on Monday.
"It obviously didn't look very good. He's still in quite a bit of discomfort," teammate Finch said post-match.
"It's really unfortunate. It was pretty innocuous. Just looking at the replay, it looked like his foot got stuck in the ground and everything twisted."
Finch said the patchy playing surface was "a bit sandy and a lot slower than I've seen it in the past" but was unsure whether it played a role in Maddinson's injury.
Renegades wicketkeeper Peter Handscomb also failed to see out the match, substituted off after 16 overs as he struggled with the effects of the soaring temperature.
Finch revealed the umpires raised concerns over Handscomb, who uncharacteristically missed the stumps with his first swipe in a simple run-out attempt and was sweating profusely.
"They felt as though he was stumbling around behind the stumps and they wanted him to go off," Finch said.
"It was a little bit scary. He's a big sweater and finds it hard to retain any fluids, so I'm sure that contributed.
"It was brutally hot out there today. There was no breeze and it was seriously hot in the middle, especially under a helmet for eight overs there to the spin and batting a bit as well."
Finch became the second player to reach 3000 career runs in the BBL, joining all-time leading scorer Chris Lynn.
Andrew Tye (3-32) was the pick of the Scorchers' bowlers.
