SuperCoach BBL Round 6 trade guide: Chris Lynn

The Australian selectors have delivered an incredible gift to SuperCoach players by leaving Chris Lynn out of Australia’s one-day side. And he’s not the only key move you need to make for Round 6.

Chris Lynn of the Heat hits a boundary.

The present arrived a week late, but it was worth the wait.

The Australian selectors delivered SuperCoaches an incredible gift when they omitted Brisbane Heat captain Chris Lynn from the one-day squad to face India.

It had seemed certain Lynn, who averaged 71 points per game to Round 5 and scored a season-high 126 in Round 4 against Sydney Sixers, would be unavailable for at least one game of Brisbane Heat’s Round 6 double.

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Instead, the powerful No.3 batsman will face Sydney Thunder (away) and Melbourne Renegades (home), presenting coaches with the most obvious captain choice of the season to date.

Lynn’s ownership has dropped slightly from Round 1, presumably as coaches prepared for his likely selection in the one-day squad.

He was in 33.7 per cent of teams after Round 4, but that figure will surely rise to more than 50 per cent for Round 6.

Chris Lynn is a must-have in SuperCoach.

In more good news, Hobart Hurricanes will benefit from D’Arcy Short and Ben McDermott also being overlooked by Australian selectors, while Adelaide Strikers will welcome back Travis Head from Test duties.

But Melbourne Stars will be without key trio Glenn Maxwell, Adam Zampa and Marcus Stoinis in a huge blow for their finals aspirations. English quick Liam Plunkett has arrived as a replacement for spinner Sandeep Lamichanne.

Aaron Finch will captain the Australian ODI side and therefore miss one game of Round 6, when Melbourne Renegades share the double with Brisbane Heat.

Those with Alex Carey, Billy Stanlake and Peter Siddle in their sides in preparation for the Strikers’ Round 7 double will have to mindful of the likelihood the trio could miss one of those fixtures.

When the Australian team is called into camp will decide the availability of popular picks including Stoinis, Maxwell, Jason Behrendorff and Jhye Richardson for Round 6.

Stoinis and Maxwell’s Stars take on Behrendorff and Richardson’s Scorchers on January 9, three days before the one-day series starts.

That will be the last round English trio Joe Denly (Sixers), Jos Buttler and Joe Root (Thunder) will be available before heading to the West Indies for a Test series.

While the availability of Lynn and Short is a huge bonus, there’s significant challenges ahead in coming rounds.

If you can continue to maximise the double game weeks while being mindful of the availability of international players, then you’ll soon rise up the rankings.

Kane Richardson should bowl eight overs in Round 6.

TOP TRADE TARGETS

Chris Lynn

Not having Lynn in your side when he has a double game week is simply asking for trouble. He scored 87 and 33 when Brisbane played twice in Round 1 but is starting to hit his straps. Do whatever you need to in order to trade him in.

Ben Cutting

Cutting started BBL08 with a massive score of 180 across two games in Round 1. He’s exactly the type of SuperCoach player you want, capable of impacting a game with bat and ball in the blink of an eye. He had an economy rate of 10 runs per over last summer but has improved to about eight this season.

Kane Richardson

Bowling at the death of an innings represents SuperCoach gold. Richardson has been performing that job with aplomb for the Renegades and should bowl eight overs across two games in Round 6. He’s one of the most expensive bowlers available, but justified his price tag with six scalps from overs 16-20 in the opening four rounds.

Dan Christian

If you didn’t jump on before Round 5, ensure you bring former Australian all-rounder Christian in during this trade window. He hasn’t scored less than 35 points this year, a reassuring statistic for coaches in what has so far been a season of fluctuating totals.

POD (POINT OF DIFFERENCE MOVES)

Liam Plunkett

The English seamer has arrived at Melbourne Stars in place of Nepalese spinner Sandeep Lamichanne. Plunkett is a hugely experienced Twenty20 player, boasting 122 wickets from 136 games. He’s also handy with the bat, averaging 15 with a strike rate of 132.

Englishman Liam Plunkett has arrived as a replacement player for Melbourne Stars.

Josh Lalor

Lalor has won his spot back in the Heat line-up and been entrusted with the new ball in recent matches. He’s not cheap but is in less than 1 per cent of sides and could be the ultimate POD if he opens the bowling twice in Round 6.

Matt Renshaw

The Heat have been shuffling their top order and Renshaw was recalled to their squad in Round 5 to face Perth Scorchers. He’s cheap, in only 2000 teams and recently plundered 345 off 273 balls in Queensland Premier Cricket.

Cameron Boyce

The Renegades spinner is slowly gaining SuperCoach popularity and was in 7 per cent of teams after Round 4. He’s regularly bowling his maximum four overs and was a shining light against Adelaide Strikers with 2-16. He’ll be more affordable than Brisbane Heat tweaker Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

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Originally published as SuperCoach BBL Round 6 trade guide: Chris Lynn