Opinion
As the Brisbane Heat succumbed to yet another dramatic batting collapse, Chris Lynn felt the need to apologise for another “piss-poor” and “embarrassing” effort.
Although it’s easy to point fingers at individuals in the wake of such a shocking loss, it is symptomatic of the decisions and directions that the Heat chose to take this season. I had my doubts with the team philosophy coming into BBL|09 despite their blockbuster international signings, and now I realise that those doubts were well-founded. Here’s why.
Each franchise has their own goals when building a squad, and for the Heat it is an obvious template. It begins with the top order: batsmen Nos. 1 to 4 are selected for their explosiveness and ability to score quick runs, whether through brute force or innovation. Players like Max Bryant and Chris Lynn clear the rope at will, Matt Renshaw and Sam Heazlett can find all sorts of gaps with deft touch and Tom Banton and AB de Villiers have both skill sets at their disposal. The Heat have a top four that on a good day can score anywhere up to 85 or 90 runs in the Powerplay.
We have seen this strategy work successfully this season. A Chris Lynn onslaught led the Heat to 1-73 from six against the Sixers, while Tom Banton took them to 2-65 in an ultimately unsuccessful chase of 213 against the Scorchers. Heck, they were 1-84 on Sunday night!
(Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)
In setting a platform like this, the Heat intend to allow their top order to carry on the carnage, like against the Hurricanes when they made 3-213, or to let the middle order play without pressure. Matt Renshaw, batting at No. 4, has helped them to a number of competitive totals this season, while Ben Cutting and Jimmy Peirson have provided the occasional cameo.
With the ability to put 200 on the board, the Heat don’t have to worry about having an outstanding bowling attack thanks to the confidence they have defending or chasing big totals in any circumstance. Although the spinners have been largely successful, the bowling frailties in the pace department are apparent, with Josh Lalor’s economy of 7.92 comfortably the lowest of all the Brisbane quicks to have played this season.
So what happens when this high-risk, high-reward strategy fails? Unfortunately for Heat fans, we’ve seen the result far too often this season.
Despite some outstanding individual performances from match to match, the consistency of the Heat batsmen has left a lot to be desired. Max Bryant’s average of 14.5 from ten innings, significantly lifted by a score of 65 against the Hurricanes, is the standout. Bryant has been dismissed in the powerplay in seven of those ten innings, immediately putting pressure on the rest of his teammates. Banton, Lynn and Renshaw have all had moments of brilliance, but they have rarely aligned, while De Villiers has been disappointing in the Heat’s most recent defeats.
These factors put pressure on the middle order, who have been underwhelming, to say the least. Ben Cutting has yet to find his groove, while Jimmy Peirson is striking at 90, chewing up valuable deliveries for minimal output. Joe Burns and Sam Heazlett have not provided much in their limited appearances either.
The middle order has shown, with the exception of a chase against the Hurricanes, that they do not have the form or the skill set required to effectively put runs on the board. This lack of adaptability in T20 cricket was no more evident than in Sunday night’s performance, as irresponsibility and a lack of application allowed a desperate Renegades side to not only claw their way back into the match but win comfortably.
However, the biggest issue is their lack of batting depth. Ben Cutting, the Heat’s only genuine all-rounder this season, comes in at No. 7 at the lowest in the order. Although Mark Steketee, James Pattinson and Josh Lalor are all capable with the bat, the Heat have been steamrolled at the fall of the sixth wicket. The lower order have rarely offered resistance, which has been detrimental to the team’s performance and their net run rate, which may well prove important in this late stage of the season as teams make a late push for a finals spot.
Of course the Brisbane Heat, like all franchises, have chosen to build their strategy and philosophy around their marquee player and captain, Chris Lynn, and this is part of the problem. There is no doubt that on his day Chris Lynn is arguably the cleanest and most explosive striker of the ball in world cricket, and the Heat have played some matches emblematic of that. However, Lynn lacks the adaptability of other franchise players, like Glenn Maxwell or Josh Philippe, and the Heat have struggled with similar problems themselves.
They have been brilliant at times. They have been awful as well. With three games left to play we are yet to see if this bold strategy will pay off or not. One thing is for certain, though: if the Heat are to be consistent contenders for the Big Bash title, they will need to rethink whether their high-risk, high-reward style is the best thing for both their franchise and their fans.
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