There is one more match in the Big Bash League on Saturday and it comes from the Manuka Oval in Canberra as the Melbourne Stars take a home game away from the MCG because of the Test match. The Sydney Thunder are their opponents.
The Stars have played four matches in this tournament and haven’t won any of them. The Thunder have only played twice and have a win and a loss to their name so both sides will be looking to make some ground here.
Melbourne Stars
It might be that with four defeats on their ledger already that the Melbourne Stars are already out of contention for the postseason. The positive for them is everyone has beaten everyone in this tournament so far so they haven’t been cut adrift to the levels that they could have been but it is fair to say that we are getting into territory where every match is a must win one. A fifth defeat to open up the competition will be terminal because their net run rate has taken a battering already.
The big problem that the Stars have had this season is stemming the flow of runs. Their attack has gone around the park too often and with that in mind you would think it is imperative for them to bowl first and know what they are chasing. The problem with that is that they will be under pressure to pull off any run chase to stay in the competition. Clearly they are going to need big performances from their big players here if they are going to stay alive.
Sydney Thunder
The Sydney Thunder have had a very light schedule in the competition so far. They have only played two matches in the 12 days the tournament has been going on for and haven’t played in a week so they have had a bit of time to take stock of what they have done right and wrong and tighten up in the areas where they need to. They probably needed that break because they’ve lost their young gun in Sam Konstas and need to come up with another plan.
While the Thunder have a win and a loss on their CV this season, they could consider themselves fortunate to have the victory because they came from the clouds to win that. The loss was against the Sydney Sixers and that doesn’t look like a terrible loss as the Sixers are the only unbeaten team in the competition. One thing the Thunder will want is more from their bowling unit because they have conceded a lot of runs in the tournament to date.
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Key Players
Ben Duckett showed why the Melbourne Stars have brought him in for the remainder of the competition in the last game when he blitzed his way to a quick 50. The Stars will need plenty more runs out of their opening batter.
Daniel Sams has already won one match with the bat for the Sydney Thunder and with the Stars not really having much when it comes to death bowling he could well be a key player for the Sydney outfit here, not just with the bat but also with the ball.
Betting
I don’t think the Sydney Thunder are going to be involved in too many low scoring matches this season and given that the Melbourne Stars have already lost four matches and now need to repair their net run rate as well as win some games I don’t think too many more of their matches will be low scoring either. The run line for this one is 320.5 and that looks too low to me, especially when you consider that there isn’t much in either of these bowling units.
Sydney Thunder had Sam Billings batting at seven last time out and Daniel Sams walked in at seven in their opening match. That is extreme batting depth while the Melbourne Stars could have Beau Webster walking in at seven with Tom Curran in behind him so they also don’t lack for depth. I don’t think there is much to worry about in either bowling unit, especially with Nathan McAndrew now injured as well. This is the second game at Manuka Oval this season. The first saw the Thunder concede 182/8 and chase it down so this run line looks low to me.
Tips
Back Over 320.5 runs for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
