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On the 28th of January, the most successful team in BBL history will face off against the most consistent team in BBL history, as the Perth Scorchers host the Sydney Sixers at #TheFurnace.
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At the commencement of BBL06, the Sixers weren’t given much of a chance to succeed, due to finishing last in BBL05 and recording just two wins in the season.
In spite of a side slightly thin on excitement factors, Sydney managed to turn their fate around in BBL06, thanks to some marvelous performances by Australia’s up and coming cricketers.
This proved to their opponents that they were ready to take the competition by storm, also proving to the BBL selectors that they didn’t need an array of international entertainment to achieve formidable victories.
Their most recent success was largely due to the mammoth effort of captain, Moises Henriques, who contributed 82 runs off 39 balls in a super-over decided semi-final at the Gabba.
This will give the Sixers a huge amount of confidence going into the big final at Perth, as their players have the skills to back up the huge momentum swing in their favour.
Playing away from home won’t worry Sydney, as the away sides have won ten out of the last 11 matches this season.
Players to watch will certainly be opener, Daniel Hughes, who has shown his explosive capabilities at the top of the order as well as New Zealand superstar and newest member of the Sixers’ brigade, Colin Munro, who in spite of being dismissed in an unorthodox style during the second innings at the Gabba, was trusted with the bat during the super over, proving that he is capable of mounting some serious damage on the opposing side.
However, on a Perth wicket that doesn’t offer much for the batsmen, it’ll be the Sixers’ bowlers who’ll have to control the game and keep the Scorchers’ total below par if they are to have a chance of claiming their second BBL title.
Sean Abbott is the leading wicket taker of the tournament, claiming 20 wickets in just nine games, and with the pace that the Perth wicket offers, he will be looking to claim a few more in a bid to consolidate his stunning consistency and wicket-taking ability shown during the 2016-17 season.
He will be complemented by Australia’s best off-spin bowler in Nathan Lyon, who has been prolific since his return to the Sixers’ line-up.
Lyon has been responsible for claiming six wickets with a healthy economy rate of 6.54, exposing his superior ability to make the wicket do the talking even when conditions aren’t in his favour.
In the Sixers’ way stands the Perth Scorchers, who have once again flow under the radar throughout this season, with spectators jumping aboard the support crews of the big teams with the even bigger international stars.
In the off-season, the Scorchers were dealt with a huge blow by losing star spinner and home-grown cult hero, Brad Hogg. However, the selectors managed to claim the signature of one of the most lethal fast bowlers in the country in Mitchell Johnson.
Johnson’s 3-3 spell against the Stars in the semi-final is among the best we’ve witnessed in the history of the BBL tournament and brings an immense amount of anticipation as to what comes next for this in-form and extremely dangerous pace bowler.
If anyone knows the Perth wicket well, it’s Mitchell Johnson, and the added benefit for the Scorchers is that he can use the bounce of the wicket in a prolific way that will send the opposing batsmen to the sheds in rapid fashion.
A man who can also rise to the occasion in the big games is English batsman, Ian Bell, who has played consistently throughout his first twenty20 tournament in Australia.
Bell has featured in all nine games of the Scorchers’ tournament and has contributed 200 runs with a high score of 61.
His average is a healthy 28.67, meaning that he will be a reliable player if the Scorchers batting line-up crumbles.
Season after season, Michael Klinger is unfairly tossed aside by Australian selectors, in spite of his consistent efforts at the top of the Scorchers’ batting order.
This year, Klinger is the eighth highest run-scorer in the tournament, due to accumulating 263 runs with a strike rate of 122.90.
The 36-year-old is a bona-fide leader who has the ability to turn the game on its head or conversely, to stamp his authority on a game to send it beyond the reach of the opposing team.
Saturday night at #TheFurnace will be a platform of revenge for the Scorchers, whose batting collapse cost them a win against the Sixers during the season.
At home in front of a sold-out crowd, the victory will be theirs for the taking, as they can slingshot the momentum of the Sixers in the favour thanks to their lethal weapon in Mitchell Johnson.
His energy will certainly be complemented by veterans of the team, Michael Klinger and Adam Voges, who will be hungry to further consolidate their success in the BBL tournaments by claiming a third BBL title.
This hunger is likely to drive Klinger in particular to put on a man of the match performance in front of his home crowd in what is sure to be a tight and see-sawing contest in the west.
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