The Big Bash League is back in Canberra on Monday when two of the more entertaining sides in the competition battle it out at the Manuka Oval as the Sydney Thunder play host to the Hobart Hurricanes in the latest key game for both teams.
The Thunder go into the match sat second in the table but they have watched on as a queue teams have closed in on them. Hobart have looked on and seen their good position in the table fade away and really need to get back on the winning trail.
Sydney Thunder
The Sydney Thunder were absolutely flying in this competition a couple of weeks ago but they have now lost three of their last four and while they are still in a pretty decent position in the standings, they could do with returning to winning ways here. To be fair to the Thunder the rain went against them in the Sydney derby last time out, but they haven’t looked quite as authoritative or dominant recently as they were earlier in the competition.
Other than one or two injuries it is hard to suggest why the Thunder have suddenly gone a little cold. They will be expected to win here though and if that is to happen their bowlers just need to come with their best stuff again and get back to holding their nerve under pressure. There doesn’t appear to be any issues with the batting, although you can always get a little bit out of a batting effort with the way the Power Surge is included in the innings these days.
Hobart Hurricanes
The early stages of this competition was good for the Hobart Hurricanes too but once they left the Blundstone Arena to tour the country their form took a significant dip. Injuries haven’t helped them it has to be said but they have now lost their last three matches and gone from a very healthy position in the top five to second from bottom so their need to win is there for all to see. The Hurricanes are not out with a loss but they will begin to lose control of their own destiny if they don’t win soon.
In the last two matches the batting which was so good for the Hurricanes earlier in the campaign hasn’t turned up. They will hope that was just because of the different conditions in Perth but if it was something else then there will be some real concerns forming. As is so often the case when their batsmen have struggled it has put pressure on their bowlers and they haven’t been able to bail their batters out. The Hurricanes need a complete performance pretty quickly.
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Team News
The Sydney Thunder will welcome Chris Green back for this match after he missed the previous game. He is likely to replace Jono Cook in the starting XI and it will be interesting to see if they recall Oliver Davies to the team.
The Hobart Hurricanes have been forced into a change with Colin Ingram having finishes his stint with the club. Will Jacks comes back into the squad and he could well open the batting with Ben McDermott moving into the middle order. There is still no James Faulkner for the Hurricanes.
Betting
The Sydney Thunder play this ground incredibly well but I’m not sure I can back a side that has lost three of its last four to win the match even though I do think they are the most likely winnings. I can see this one being a high scoring game. There has been a feeling that the pitch has slowed up here in recent times but when you look at the boundary count I’m not sure that is the case. I think we’ve just seen some pretty ordinary batting at times.
If the ball does slow up then it is the spinners which will prosper but Lamichhane aside there isn’t really a quality spinner in the game. Tanveer Sangha has taken a lot of wickets but he tends to bowl balls that can be attacked. Importantly here both sides have batsmen to take advantage of the powerplay and the Power Surge and I expect to see those plays thrive here. The 37.5 boundaries line is probably one higher than I would have wanted in an ideal world but the odds against price tempts me in despite that.
Tips
WON – Back Over 37.5 boundaries for a 3/10 stake at 2.10 with William Hill
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