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Victoria and South Australia have been unpredictable throughout the tournament but will both feel they have a good chance of joining New South Wales in Sunday’s grand final. Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from 1:45pm (AEDT).
Victoria registered important wins against Tasmania and table-toppers NSW in their last two games, but South Australia may feel they have the edge after winning the previous encounter between the teams just a week earlier.
That match was a low-scoring affair on a Blacktown pitch that has troubled batsmen throughout the competition.
However, low-scoring matches have been common for Victoria, whose bowlers have easily overshadowed their batsmen. James Pattinson, John Hastings and John Holland all reside in the top five for most wickets taken in the tournament.
Pattinson has the most of any from his side – 13 at an average of 17.15 – and while he didn’t exactly tear through South Australia’s line-up when the two sides met last week, he certainly proved a handful, ending with the figures of 1 for 20 off his 10 overs.
Those figures look much better when you consider that the one wicket he got was that of Travis Head, on naught.
South Australia’s recently appointed captain started the tournament in the most emphatic fashion possible, with a double century, but has had a handful of failings with the bat since, falling to Pattinson in the first over being one of the biggest.
Head is still South Australia’s leading run getter in the tournament, but with over two-thirds of those runs coming in one innings he will be looking to stamp his authority over a formidable new-ball attack.
Yet even with Head missing, a number of times they have been relatively strong with bat as a result of their depth. Callum Ferguson has perhaps been their most consistent batsman in the middle order, averaging over fifty, while the only player to make a half century from either side when the teams last met, Jake Lehmann, has strengthened their batting further
It is with the ball that South Australia have at times been exposed, as only the Cricket Australia XI have conceded more runs in the entire competition.
With an inexperienced bowling attack, they will be looking to their main strike-bowler, Kane Richardson, to make early inroads into what has been an occasionally erratic Victoria batting line-up.
Richardson is equal fourth most wickets for the competition, with 11, and has been South Australia’s best bowler. The fact he has taken five 5-wicket hauls in just 44 list-A appearances shows just how devastating he can be on the right day.
Victoria will be more confident of negating Richardson’s pace and skill after scoring 320 in their last game, but will still most likely be making a change to their batting order as Glenn Maxwell returns after being suspended for missing a recovery session.
Marcus Stoinis replaced Maxwell, and after making a terrific hundred will most likely stay in the side, hoping to further prove the Victorian selectors wrong for dropping him.
The reality is, whoever he replaces there will be a lot of pressure on Maxwell to perform – not just due to his suspension, but due to a disappointing tournament in general. He could well get out early and draw additional criticism, but South Australia know he has the potential to take the game away from them.
Prediction
Both sides’ performances have varied substantially over the course of the competition – showing a capacity for brilliance, but also exposing vulnerabilities.
Yet with a far superior net run-rate and a win against the team in first, Victoria can be truly brilliant when they find their stride.
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