The second part of the double header in the Big Bash League on Wednesday comes from the Optus Stadium in Perth where the defending champions Perth Scorchers play host to the Sydney Thunder in a battle of the top two heading into the day.
That highlights that both of these teams have made good starts to their season and will be full of confidence heading into a game where they both have the chance to lay a marker down to the other in case they meet in more important matches later in the campaign.
Perth Scorchers
The Perth Scorchers sit top of the table and that is despite laying fewer matches than the four teams below them. That highlights how dominant they have been in the first half of the campaign. Another thing I like to use to highlight such dominance is net run rate and the Scorchers have the best in the tournament so they are going along very nicely as they look to keep hold of their crown. They are set for reinforcements when the Tests are over too.
We know Perth are going to bowl well whenever they take to the field. There is no weak link in this bowling attack and even if you get some of it away the other part of it will generally get you. They took a little bit of time to warm to their stride with the bat but slowly they look to be getting the hang of it, although not having to chase massive scores mean we don’t always see them maximise the tools they have available to them.
Sydney Thunder
The Sydney Thunder got off to a very inconsistent start. We all know what happened to them in their second match when they got shot out for 15 but to their credit they have bounced back with three wins since then to make it four in total and they have wiped out the negative net run rate that collapse against Adelaide created which shows the sort of margins they have been winning their matches by in recent times.
It is no surprise they have caught up with the run rate because there are some really powerful hitters in the top six of the Thunder and they still have Dave Warner to come back into the fold next week. You sense they have got their confidence back with the bat, although that will be tested to the full here. They have had a few injuries to overcome this term but in the main their bowling looks to be going along ok so they are set to put on a big show here.
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Key Players
You need to play spin well when you take on the Sydney Thunder and so Josh Inglis will be a big player for the Perth Scorchers. He can play all the shots needed to success against the tweakers so Perth need a performance from him.
Alex Hales is starting to show why he is one of the most sought after big hitting opening batters in the world and if he can get after this Scorchers new ball attack, which might be the best in the competition, and put them off their lengths it could go some way to getting the Thunder ahead of the game.
Betting
There have been three matches on this ground in this tournament and they have all been fairly low scoring. Some of that was a lack of confidence within the batters at the time of those matches and another part of it was it was between teams with very good bowling attacks but at the same time we’ve seen a bit in the Perth wickets this summer, not just in the Big Bash but in the T20 World Cup which proceeded it so I don’t think it is a coincidence.
The three matches on this ground in this competition have yielded 30, 28 and 28 in terms of boundaries and given the bowlers on show in this match and the likelihood that there will be something in the wicket, not to mention the enormous square boundaries here and I’m not sure we’ll get near a 35.5 boundaries line in this one. We’ve seen all season that quality seam bowling catch the Thunder out while Perth aren’t the best players of spin so there is more than enough to suggest that the boundaries may not flow as regularly as they are needed to cover this line. I’ll play the under.
Tips
Back Under 35.5 boundaries for a 3/10 stake at 1.80 with William Hill
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