The second part of the double header in the Big Bash League on Sunday comes from the Gold Coast as the Adelaide Strikers go up against the defending champions Sydney Sixers in the latest match at the Metricon Stadium.
Both these sides go into the match sitting in the top four in the standings so the winner here will bolster their chances of not just making it through to the finals but getting there in a position high enough to secure an easier path in them.
Adelaide Strikers
The Adelaide Strikers have had an up and down start to the season and sit with a 3-3 record from their opening six matches. They perhaps saved their worst performance for their big night on New Year’ Eve which will have been a disappointment to them and from their point of view you would hope that they will deliver a response here. If they do and it is good enough to win the match then they will sit pretty at the halfway stage of their campaign.
The big issue that the Strikers are having is putting up enough runs with the bat. That has been the case all season. They have had the odd decent individual effort which has got them up to a creditable score which their very strong bowling attack was able to defend, but in the main they have been far too light with the bat. Two of their three wins have come against the Perth Scorchers and Brisbane Heat, two of the poorer teams so far to the Strikers have a lot to prove.
Sydney Sixers
The defending champions go into this match off the back of a defeat to the Brisbane Heat on Saturday which it has to be said was a surprising loss. They looked in control of the game at one point too but their usually reliable bowling suddenly let them down and they paid the price. That will fuel their fire to make sure they repeat the comfortable win they had over the Strikers in the reverse meeting, a victory which will move them to the top of the table.
The Sixers usually follow a similar path to the Strikers in that they are not always the biggest scoring side in the competition but they have an attack that can squeeze and defend most scores. The ironic thing this season is they have scored a lot more runs with the bat but they have been a lot more expensive with the ball as well. If they can just tighten up a little with the ball, which will happen naturally when the Test series is over and key players return then they should be in a good place. The schedule hasn’t done them any favours here however.
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Team News
The Adelaide Strikers have named the same squad which they went into the double header with the Perth Scorchers with. Whether they decide to change something to allow their batting to flow better remains to be seen but it would be a surprise if the personnel aren’t the same.
The Sydney Sixers will pick from the same squad which they had for the match with the Brisbane Heat. Jake Ball is waiting in the wings to come in and he might just get his chance with one or two of the Sixers bowlers going the distance in that match.
Betting
When the Sixers played on Saturday night I took the performance of Daniel Christian. The line was 34.5 points and although he got sawn off with one of the many ridiculously poor umpiring decisions in this tournament he still made up a total of 66 points. Despite that, the line has stayed exactly the same for this match and in a weird quirk of fate the price has actually increased even though there is nothing to suggest his chances of covering are any lower.
If anything, given the quality of the Strikers’ bowling attack there is even more chance that he will get to the crease and even earlier than he did against the Heat. If that happens we could be in business because in the reverse meeting between these two Christian clobbered a 16-ball 50 and nothing has changed in terms of the Adelaide attack in that time. He also took a wicket and on Saturday he showed his potential for catches as well. I expect him to cover this line once again.
Tips
Back D.Christian’s Performance – Over 34.5pts for a 3/10 stake at 1.87 with 888sport
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