BBL7 - Sixers v Heat Preview (Plus the Lurker's Pick and Bank)
Sydney Sixers (2-6) v Brisbane Heat (4-4) @ The SCG
Head to Head History - Sydney Sixes 6, Brisbane Heat 1
Last 5 - Sydney Sixers 4, Brisbane Heat 1
Sydney Sixers 13-Man Squad - Johan Botha (c), Nic Maddinson, Moises Hneriques, Daniel Hughes, Jordan Silk, Sean Abbott, Nathan Lyon, Peter Neville +, Joe Denly, Micky Edwards, Daniel Sams, Ben Dwarshuis, Carlos Brathwaite
Brisbane Heat 13-Man Squad - Brendon McCullum (c), Ben Cutting, Brendan Doggett, Jason Flores, Sam Heazlett, Shadab Khan, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Lalor, Jimmy Peirson, Alex Ross, Mark Steketee, Mitchell Swepson
Preview - The Heat have their finals’ hopes on the line when they travel south to take on a resurgent Sydney Sixes at the SCG tonight. The Heat have dropped to 4-4 after losing their last two games, and need to win their remaining two games to ensure a finals’ spot. The Sixers are playing for pride only, but did manage to get off the bottom of the table with a convincing 8-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars at the MCG on Tuesday.
Big Batting Battle - Daniel Hughes and Brendan McCullum - Two very different types of opening batsmen go head-to-head here, with an accumulator like Hughes up against the explosive McCullum. Hughes has found his form in the past two games, finishing not out on 66 and 49 in winning run chases against the Thunder and Stars. The Heat have been increasingly reliant on McCullum of late, without the services of Chris Lynn, but his 53 was not enough, against the Hurricanes, to secure a victory for his team.
Big Bowling Battle - Nathan Lyon v Yasir Shah - Two quality Test match spinners lock horns here, with Australia's Nathan Lyon and Pakistan’s Yasir Shah vital to their team’s chances. Shah might have only picked up four wickets in five games, but he has been a banker for the Heat, going for just 5.9 runs per over in his 20 overs. Lyon was mesmerising against the Stars, claiming the big wickets of Dunk, Pietersen and Handscomb in taking 3/18 from four overs, to press his claims for a return to the Australian ODI side.
Ground Dynamic - The SCG - The SCG wicket on Saturday for the Sydney Smash was a little bit up and down, however the Sixers ran down the Thunder score of 157 on the final ball. Expect batsmen to try and target the short square boundary of the ground, with the bowlers looking to bowl a line and length to defend the vast expanses of the members’ square boundary side of the field.
THE LURKER'S PICK - (16-15) - Brisbane Heat "The Heat need to win to stay in the finals race so I'm expecting them to be at their best tonight, which should be a fraction too good for an improving Sixers side."
THE LURKER'S 10 UNIT BANK (Running Tally - 46 Units)
(Tab odds)
3.5 Units Brisbane Heat to win by 1-20 runs or 1-4 wickets @ $5
3.5 Units Alex Ross to Score 25+ into a Heat win @ $3.40
1.5 Units Sixers high/bat bowlers double to be Dwarshuis/Hughes @ $20.25
1.5 Units Heat high bat/bowler double to be McCullum/Doggett @ $16.50