Under dark and cloudy skies at the SCG, Maxwell opted to have first use of a wicket that has spent large parts of the afternoon under covers.Â
The Stars are winless in the opening three games of the tournament, and have lost 10 of 11 dating back to midway through last season.
They face a stern test against the Sixers, who are unbeaten through their first three games of this campaign.
Making matters more difficult for the Stars is the return from illness of Sean Abbott, who replaces Todd Murphy for the Sixers.
The Magenta remain without English allrounder Tom Curran, who is partway through his four-game ban for umpire intimidation.
The Stars have Pakistani spinning-allrounder Imad Wasim in for his first match of the season, while Joel Paris is also back.
SYDNEY SIXERS: James Vince, Josh Philippe, Daniel Hughes, Moises Henriques (capt), Jordan Silk, Jack Edwards, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Jackson Bird, Joel Davies, Stephen O'Keefe.
MELBOURNE STARS: Tom Rogers, Sam Harper, Beau Webster, Glenn Maxwell (capt), Marcus Stoinis, Hilton Cartwright, Imad Wasim, Jonathan Merlo, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Joel Paris.
11°C