SuperCoach BBL: There’s one round before finals – who do you need in your squad?
There’s no doubt set to be some thrilling matches coming up, so the pressure will be on the players to perform – who other than D’Arcy Short is so reliable with not just bat but also able to take a bag when called on to bowl?
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Who needs to bat well when you can bowl like that? A freakish bowling performance by D’Arcy Short saw the Hobart Hurricanes usurp the Sydney Thunder in the race for a spot in the finals, while Round 12 of the SuperCoach BBL season also saw the Adelaide Strikers and Sydney Sixers really start to ramp up their seasons as it comes to the pointy end of BBL|09.
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The Sixers’ returning Australian ODI representative players will more than offset their loss of a key international import. How dangerous will their line-up look if Sean Abbott resumes, just in time for finals? But the question is now how they will go about balancing their side – there’s a heap of options available for Moises Henriques to rotate through from a bowling perspective, while the batting order will also require some shuffles and adjustment.
The Strikers are top two and will simply need to defeat the Hurricanes at Adelaide Oval to stay there. They’ll know what they need to do – a win against wooden spooners Melbourne Renegades will push the Sixers up into the top two.
Whoever finishes there, they’ll face a first-up final at the MCG against the Stars to qualify immediately for a home grand final – it will be a doozy of a match whoever it is who takes them on, particularly with the Stars’ season starting to stutter with back-to-back losses.
BOOM OF THE ROUND: D’ARCY SHORT | HOBART HURRICANES | BAT / BWL | 160 points
As Brendon Julian said in the Fox Cricket commentary – all that bowling in the nets in India worked wonders for D’Arcy Short! He may have failed with the bat, but this is exactly why Short has Dual Position Player status – he’s a weapon with the ball in hand as well as with the willow. Capturing 5/21 from his full allotment of four overs, Short now has the best bowling figures in BBL|09. It means that his price point hasn’t fallen anything like as much as it would seem that it would after he fell for a second ball duck, clean bowled by Arjun Nair. Now the question becomes as to whether or not you can get him in for Round 13!
BUST OF THE ROUND: DANIEL HUGHES | SYDNEY SIXERS | BAT | 0 points
Having opened for the Sixers for the entirety of the season, Hughes found himself shunted down the order with James Vince being elevated to the opening position alongside Josh Philippe and the return of Steve Smith to the Sixers’ line-up for the first time in many seasons. With Hughes not rolling his arm over once so far this season, if he’s not batting in the top four, he may have a few more donuts to come – his ownership is currently at 7% and will no doubt fall further in coming rounds.
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UNIQUE OF THE ROUND: MOHAMMAD NABI | MELBOURNE RENEGADES | BAT / BWL | 155 points | 4.1% ownership
Doing everything he could to help the ‘Gades get the game won, the Afghanistan captain batted with amazing power as he amassed an incredible score in Round 12. What the Renegades wouldn’t have given to have him available for the entirety of their BBL|09 campaign – he was a vital component to their success the previous season, and they’ve definitely missed his presence. While in his three matches this season he’s yet to really bowl with the customary brilliance we expect, his incredible batting was best showcased as he cleared the fence time and time again against the Hurricanes. As a player on the double this upcoming round, he’s obviously a player to target - at $166,000 he’s fairly pricey, but obviously worth it.
PLAYERS TO TARGET NEXT ROUND
With the Heat and the Renegades the last teams on the double round, it’s time to think about who from their line-up is worth bringing in as they – in all likelihood – complete their season. Making finals from here is going to be tricky for the Heat, but if they win these two upcoming matches it could be good for them and good for the SuperCoach players who own their players in Round 13. The Renegades are playing as spoilers.
Elsewhere, there’s two new players who have joined the SuperCoach BBL ranks, with Melbourne Renegades set to see $42,000 WKP / BAT option Brayden Stepien set to debut in the absence of Sam Harper. He’s from Carlton in Victoria.
By comparison, the Stars have again looked to Pakistan, with $42,000 quick Dilbar Hussain signing on as an international replacement player and has been named in their squad for the match against the Heat.
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AB DE VILLIERS | BAT | 25.5 avg. | $145,800
After having a strong first up showing for the Heat, AB has simply not got going at all. In his most recent outing he only scored 25 points – it’s meant that his price has plummeted accordingly, and he’s now an extremely affordable option. But will he actually start to score? With the Heat line-up looking more and more stacked at the top with ABDV, Chris Lynn, Sam Heazlett, Matt Renshaw, and Marnus Labuschagne, it’s impossible to know exactly what order they will all bat in from match-to-match, but it would be hoped that the South African legend will be in the top four of their order for both matches.
JAMES PATTINSON | BWL | 73.8 avg. | $187,300
After missing the return match following his 5/33 against the Strikers, it was not just Pattinson’s tight bowling that saw him score 93 points against a Sixers side that only dropped two wickets as they chased down the Heat’s paltry total. Patto made 27 in quick time, cleared the boundary a couple of times, and also struck a 4 to help his points for batting total nearly half of his Round 12 score. With a wicket to his name to boot, as well as incredibly tight bowling in a side that was otherwise blasted around the park, Pattinson’s form is such that if you can afford him you definitely want him in your SuperCoach BBL squad while the Heat are on a double.
PLAYERS TO AVOID NEXT ROUND
It’s impossible to review the last round of the SuperCoach BBL season with highlighting the unfortunate injuries to Shaun Marsh and Sam Harper from the Melbourne Renegades – here’s hoping that both recover as quickly as possible. The Stars have also been beset by injury, with Hilton Cartwright not named in the squad due to a fractured right hand; his status remains uncertain as he is undergoing further assessment.
Chris Jordan has left the Scorchers to link up with his English teammates in South Africa. [Note: Originally we thought Tom Curran from the Sixers was off too; he’s still here for Round 13 then leaves.]
JAKE WEATHERALD | ADELAIDE STRIKERS | BAT | 47.3 avg. | $113,600
Of late, Weatherald’s form has completely dropped away – he only scored 16 points in his first match in Round 12, against the Stars, and then 51 with the bat against the Scorchers. At least those were both better than the 5 he picked up against the Hurricanes in Round 11. While there is a big difference between playing against them away versus taking them on at Adelaide Oval, as he will in Round 13, his timing of the ball at the moment is such that it’s tough to back him in to score heavily – his form simply doesn’t warrant selection at this point in time.
MOISES HENRIQUES | SYDNEY SIXERS | BAT / BWL | 41.3 avg. | $130,200
Like the aforementioned Hughes, Henriques may prove to be a victim of the return of international players – Smith coming in at first drop will likely push him down the batting order, while Josh Hazlewood’s expected return for the Sixers this round will also mean that the Sixers’ skipper won’t necessarily have to call upon his own bowling. This will only be increased if Sean Abbott can regain full fitness and return as the business end of the season approaches.
CAPTAIN’S CHOICE
It’s a classic case of whether or not you focus on players on the double or not this round – the Heat and Renegades simply haven’t been scoring heavily enough – from either a BBL|09 or a SuperCoach BBL perspective – to necessarily ‘bank’ on their players scoring heavily despite them playing twice in Round 13. The obvious candidates for captains from the ranks of the Heat are de Villiers, Pattinson and Ben Cutting, who is arguably their best player this season. At the ‘Gades, don’t sleep on Beau Webster, while , while the form of Mohammad Nabi with the bat looks fantastic – can he start claiming some wickets too? Aaron Finch will want to fire.
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This could be a round where you bank on an individual match being enough for a player to score heavily and justify your skipper selection. D’Arcy Short and Daniel Sams have shown that – despite failing with the bat – their bowling exploits are sensational enough for them to post super high scores, plus Sams’ ability to take late wickets makes him a consistent points earner.
Originally published as SuperCoach BBL: There’s one round before finals – who do you need in your squad?