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BBL07: Team of the tournament

Roar Guru
7th February, 2018
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D'Arcy Short of the Hurricanes hits the ball for four during the Big Bash League (BBL) T20 match between the Sydney Sixers and the Hobart Hurricanes at the Sydney Cricket Ground in Sydney on Friday, Dec. 23, 2016. (AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)
Roar Guru
7th February, 2018
20

BBL07 has come to a close, with the Adelaide Strikers defeating the Hobart Hurricanes in the final.

That must mean it’s time for someone at The Roar to cobble together a team of the tournament – and that someone is me.

A handful of the players in this side picked themselves, while others only narrowly edged out their rivals. As always, there are some unlucky omissions. Stats via ESPN Cricinfo and Cricket Australia.

1. D’Arcy Short (Hobart Hurricanes)
11 matches; 572 runs; H/S 122*; avg. 57.20; S/R 148.57; 1 x 100; 4 50s; 53 x 4s; 26 x 6s
17.0 overs; 3 wkts; 134 runs; B/B 1/20; avg. 44.66; econ. 7.88; S/R 34.0

Short had the kind of BBL most batsmen can only dream about. His run tally of 572 absolutely shattered the previous mark of 412, set by Shaun Marsh back in BBL02, and his unbeaten 122 in Brisbane stands as the highest individual score in BBL history – all of this at a strike rate just shy of 150.

D'Arcy Short

(AAP Image/Dave Hunt)

As if his ballistic batting wasn’t enough, Short proved a more than handy option with the ball, with Hobart captain George Bailey calling on him regularly as the tournament progressed. It’s hard to imagine what more the Northern Territorian could have done in BBL07, short (pun intended) of dragging his inconsistent team over the line in the final.

2. Alex Carey (Adelaide Strikers) (wk)
11 matches; 443 runs; H/S 100; avg. 49.22; S/R 141.53; 1 x 100; 2 x 50s; 46 x 4s; 13 x 6s
14 dismissals (14 catches, 0 stumpings); 1.27 dis./inns; best 3

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Like Short, Alex Carey was a lock at the top of the order. His season was so good that he could have made the side as either a batsman or a wicketkeeper, finishing second for total runs scored (also passing Marsh’s old record) and first for dismissals.

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Carey’s fine form was rewarded with selection in the second ODI of the summer, in Tim Paine’s absence, and the current Twenty20tri-series. At 26 years of age, the former GWS Giant looks every chance of having a lengthy international cricketing career.

3. Travis Head (Adelaide Strikers) (c)
9 matches; 374 runs; H/S 85*; avg. 53.42; S/R 133.09; 3 x 50s; 28 x 4s; 12 x 6s
13.0 overs; 4 wkts; 116 runs; B/B 1/8; avg. 29.00; econ. 8.92; S/R 19.5

At international level, Head’s summer has been a mixed bag. He was in and out of the ODI team, scored a game-high 96 in the fourth match and was then overlooked for the first T20I.

However, there was nothing mixed about Head’s efforts in BBL07. His batting at 3 was reliable enough to cope with the loss of early wickets, yet dynamic enough to keep the score ticking along when the Strikers’ powerful openers got off to a strong start.

As captain of the winning team Head gets the gig in this side, although it’s difficult to see how any half-competent skipper could have misused the bowling talent Head had at his disposal.

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Travis Head

(AAP Image/David Moir)

4. Shane Watson (Sydney Thunder) (vc)
10 matches; 331 runs; H/S 77; avg. 36.77; S/R 139.07; 2 x 50s; 31 x 4s; 15 x 6s
17.4 overs; 3 wkts; 168 runs; B/B 1/13; avg. 56.00; econ. 9.50; S/R 35.3

Watson’s output diminished a little as the tournament progressed (perhaps from carrying the heavy burden that was the Thunder’s batting line-up), with his two half-centuries coming in his side’s first three games.

Even so, his consistency stood out; in ten innings, Watson failed to reach 20 only three times and was dismissed in single digits just once.

The 36-year-old veteran’s bowling was largely forgettable, but his efforts with the bat showed he is still a T20 force.

5. Glenn Maxwell (Melbourne Stars)
9 matches; 299 runs; H/S 84; avg. 37.37; S/R 154.12; 3 x 50s; 26 x 4s; 12 x 6s
6.0 overs; 1 wkt; 53 runs; B/B 1/24; avg. 53.00; econ. 8.83; S/R 36.0

The Melbourne Stars might have to lose the plural because for much of the tournament there was only one in their side. The repeated failures of his teammates didn’t seem to phase Maxwell, who finished ninth for total runs scored (from less games than all but two of those above him) and fifth for overall strike rate.

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The Victorian strokemaker has been harshly treated by the Australian selectors this summer but his performances for the Melbourne saw him force his way back into the ODI side for the final match against England. His dynamic fielding gave Stars fans some rare moments of joy and he provided handy part-time bowling when needed.

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(AAP Image/Rob Blakers)

6. Ashton Turner (Perth Scorchers)
11 matches; 252 runs; H/S 70; avg. 31.50; S/R 162.58; 3 x 50s; 12 x 4s; 16 x 6s

Turner’s tournament was somewhat hit-and-miss but boy, when he hit, he really hit. His eye-watering strike rate was the third highest in BBL07 and the two men in front of him – Simon Milenko (171.88) and Chris Lynn (162.64) – didn’t face enough deliveries to warrant selection in this side.

A whopping 38 per cent of Turner’s runs came in sixes. To put this into perspective, the next highest percentage by any player to score at least 200 runs belonged to Colin Ingram, with 30 per cent. That is some serious striking.

7. Dwayne Bravo (Melbourne Renegades)
11 matches; 42.5 overs; 18 wkts; 363 runs; B/B 5/28; avg. 20.16; econ. 8.47; S/R 14.2
8 inns.; 100 runs; H/S 26; avg. 20.00; S/R 131.57; 6 x 4s; 5 x 6s

The equal-leading wicket-taker for the tournament, Bravo was the backbone of the Renegades’ attack. His off-pace deliveries confounded batsmen and he returned the second best match figures of the tournament, taking 5/28 against the Hurricanes.

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Bravo’s high-ish economy rate gets a pass because he was routinely called upon to quell the tournament’s most dangerous batsmen and generally bowled the final over of his opponents’ innings. To cap it all off, his late-innings hitting with the bat gave the Renegades even more bang for their buck.

Dwayne Bravo

(Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

8. Andrew Tye (Perth Scorchers)
6 matches; 23.4 overs; 16 wkts; 192 runs; B/B 5/23; avg. 12.00; econ. 8.11; S/R 8.8

Few are as calm at the death as Tye and the Western Australian veteran was at his devastating best in BBL07. He had 16 wickets from just six matches (including a second BBL hat trick) is a remarkable effort; all the more so when you consider that his outlandish strike rate of 8.8 deliveries per wicket was the only single-digit strike rate for the tournament.

Tye was rewarded with another call-up to the national side, this time in ODIs, and looked far more at home than he did in his earlier stints as a Twenty20 bowler. His canny variations could add another string to Australia’s bow at the 2019 World Cup.

9. Rashid Khan (Adelaide Strikers)
11 matches; 44.0 overs; 18 wkts; 249 runs; B/B 3/20; avg. 13.83; econ. 5.65; S/R 14.6

The only thing standing between Rashid Khan and the Player of the Tournament award was D’Arcy Short’s incredible season. His fast action and near-unpickable ball release tied some of the competition’s best batsmen in knots.

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In a stellar debut BBL, the 19-year-old leggie finished as equal-leading wicket-taker and had the best economy rate of any player to bowl more than four overs. It’s fair to say there won’t be too many higher-earning Afghan cricketers during the next few years.

Rashid Khan of the Adelaide Strikers

(AAP Image/David Mariuz)

10. Billy Stanlake (Adelaide Strikers)
10 matches; 38.0 overs; 11 wkts; 246 runs; B/B 2/22; avg. 22.36; econ. 6.47; S/R 20.7

The towering Queenslander was arguably the most consistent paceman in BBL07. He took just over a wicket per match, with an economy rate under 6.5 runs per over, and never conceded more than 31 runs in an innings. That’s an impressive trifecta for a young bowler who delivered a hefty portion of his overs during powerplays.

Stanlake’s BBL excellence culminated in his selection for Australia in the current Twenty20tri-series. If his 3/15 against New Zealand is anything to go by, the sky is the limit.

11. Fawad Ahmed (Sydney Thunder)
10 matches; 40.0 overs; 12 wkts; 245 runs; B/B 3/31; avg. 20.41; econ. 6.12; S/R 20.0

The Thunder might have fizzled with the bat but their spin bowling unit kept the side’s finals hopes alive until their last match. Fawad Ahmed was the leader of that pack.

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Ahmed’s smart variations made him a handful for batsmen throughout the tournament. He finished with the sixth-best economy rate and was equal eighth on the list of wicket-takers.

Honourable mentions
Jofra Archer (Hobart Hurricanes)

Wait, Jofra Archer didn’t make the team? That’s crazy, you say. Well, yes and no. His omission is comfortably the most controversial, given the manner in which he exploded onto the T20 scene this summer, and is purely a consequence of his disappointing final third of the tournament.

Across his last four matches (including the final, in which he returned figures of 1/46), Archer’s economy was 9.77 and his strike rate was 43.0; numbers far worse than his overall economy (7.96) and strike rate (17.3). No bowler who made this team had such an extended run of underwhelming performances at any point during the tournament.

Apparently Archer was carrying an ankle complaint through his final matches, which would explain his dip in form. Whatever the reason, Hobart’s most potent bowler was unable to produce his best when it mattered most.

Hurricanes fans (including yours truly) can take solace in knowing that the BBL hasn’t yet seen the best of what this gifted 22-year-old has to offer with both bat and ball. He’s a scary prospect.

Cameron White (Melbourne Renegades)
The Victorian stalwart was unlucky to miss out to Shane Watson. He captained well in Aaron Finch’s absence and was a rock in the Renegades’ batting line-up.

In the end, White’s modest strike rate of 111.35 – comfortably the lowest of any batsman to pass 250 runs – was what squeezed him out.

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Cameron White

(AAP Image/ Hamish Blair)

Tom Cooper (Melbourne Renegades)
It was almost a flip of the coin between Cooper and Maxwell. In the end, Maxwell’s higher strike rate (154 versus 141) got him over the line, combined with the fact that he generally received less support from his teammates than Cooper did.

Still, Cooper’s clever batting, handy part-time darts and athletic fielding were a key factor in the Renegades’ march to their first BBL semi-final.

Ben Laughlin (Adelaide Strikers)
It could just as easily have been Peter Siddle named here, but Laughlin was given the task of closing out the Strikers’ bowling performances and delivered more often than not. He was reliable in the field, too, manufacturing the catch of the tournament.

Laughlin would no doubt be disappointed that three of his worst performances came against his former side, the Hurricanes. Of course, there could be no better tonic than drinking from the championship cup at their expense.

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