There is one team left to begin their Big Bash League campaign and it is the defending champions Perth Scorchers. They start their title defence against the team they beat in the final last year in Sydney Sixers on Saturday.
The Sixers have already played a match this season which they lost so they will be eager to get off the mark here and save putting themselves under early pressure as they look to regain their crown. The Scorchers will prove difficult opponents though.
Perth Scorchers
The Perth Scorchers begin their title defence on home soil here and they do so knowing that they have won the last four matches against the Sydney Sixers. They will be without the player of the match from that final last year with Laurie Evans currently banned from playing, while their talisman Mitchell Marsh is out of the tournament with injury so this is going to be a different Scorchers side taking to the field here.
The one thing that won’t have changed is the quality they have on offer in their bowling attack. They have historically had the best bowling unit in the competition, especially in the fast and bouncy conditions in Perth, and that doesn’t look to have changed here. They have added three overseas batters to the squad and if they come off then the Scorchers are going to be very tough to beat but if they take time to get going then the champions could be vulnerable.
Sydney Sixers
The Sydney Sixers went into this competition fancied to go well once again but they were sent tumbling down to earth with a pretty emphatic defeat at the hands of the Adelaide Strikers and they’ll be looking to rebound from that and show their worth here. It was one of those performances where nothing went right in Adelaide, although to be fair to them the Strikers haven’t exactly done the form any harm with their demolition of the Sydney Thunder.
The big concern for the Sixers is that their batting never got going in that first game. They didn’t hit a single six and there was a real lack of intensity and aggression about their innings which you would imagine needs to change, although they were up against a bowling attack that is hard to get away. The other concern would be that their own bowlers didn’t really hit the ground running so it is fair to say they need a much improved display here.
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Key Players
Adam Lyth had a brilliant season in The Hundred and should have the game to go well here in Perth. He is excellent square of the wicket and should get the freedom to go big in the powerplay. He will be familiar with Faf du Plessis at the top of the order as they opened the batting for the Northern Superchargers.
Sean Abbott was probably the only bowler to come out of the first game with any credit with the ball for the Sydney Sixers and against this powerful Perth Scorchers batting they are going to need their talisman to be at his deadliest.
Betting
As good as the Sydney Sixers are if there is one thing I don’t do it is take on the Perth Scorchers on home soil, especially with this bowling unit in situ. I think this is the best bowling unit to pitch conditions in the competition and the 4/5 that they win this match looks acceptable to me, especially when the Sixers probably have a few questions to answer from within after their battering by the Adelaide Strikers.
Perth have won the last four meetings between these two teams so they have a bit of an Indian sign over the Sixers and while it isn’t completely ideal that there is no Mitchell Marsh or Laurie Evans here, this still looks a very strong side. Sydney might need to rethink their strategy a little for this match and haven’t exactly had much time to work on that with all the travelling they’ve been doing so I’m with the Scorchers here.
Tips
Back Perth Scorchers to beat Sydney Sixers for a 3/10 stake at 1.75 with Bet365
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