SuperCoach BBL: Should you trade Hobart Hurricanes D’Arcy Short after his one-day international call-up?
D’Arcy Short’s return to the Australian one-day international squad will scupper the long-term plans of almost 30,000 SuperCoach teams. Should you trade immediately or wait?
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D’Arcy Short’s elevation to the one-day squad to tour India next month has thrown a huge curve ball into the plans of almost 30,000 SuperCoaches.
The Hobart Hurricanes star and leading run scorer from BBL07 and BBL08 has been drafted into the squad to replace injured paceman Sean Abbott.
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Abbott suffered a side strain during the Sixers’ super over triumph over Sydney Thunder and has been ruled out of the tour.
The Australians are expected to head to India on January 8, the day after the Sydney Test between Australia and New Zealand is due to finish.
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That would likely mean Short plays his last game for two weeks on January 5 against Perth Scorchers in the middle of SuperCoach BBL Round 6.
He is guaranteed to miss fixtures against Brisbane Heat (January 9), Sydney Thunder (January 11), Perth Scorchers (January 13), Sydney Sixers (January 16) and Adelaide Strikers (January 19), taking in five SuperCoach rounds.
The Australians have three matches against India from January 14-19 and pending travel, Short could also miss the Hurricanes’ January 21 fixture against Melbourne Renegades.
That would be a blow for coaches who took a long-term approach by starting Short with a view to holding him until at least Hobart’s Round 12 double.
The Renegades game is the first of Hobart’s two Round 12 matches. The other is on January 24 against Sydney Thunder.
Short’s score of 0 in the rain-affected loss to Melbourne Stars will cause his price to plummet in coming rounds.
Considering he’s only bowled two overs in four matches, coaches have been reliant on his batting for points.
Although it’s hard to trade the BBL’s premier players, his pending departure and possible absence for game one of Round 12 suggest it’s time to cash in.
THREE TRADES TO CONSIDER
1. THE STRAIGHT SWAP
Big guns such as Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell and Kane Richardson play twice in Round 5 when Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars have the double. Why not get a double dip from a player with just as much scoring potential as Short? Just ensure it doesn’t leave you with less than 11 players as Adelaide Strikers and Perth Scorchers have a bye in Round 5. If you wait until Round 6, Short to Chris Jordan would work.
2. WAIT FOR MATTHEW WADE
The long-term plan for the Hurricanes would have been to reunite Wade and Short at the top of the order after the Test series against New Zealand. If you wait until Round 7, you could trade Short to Wade, pending the Test batsman’s BBL selection. Hold off until Round 8 if Wade isn’t named for the January 9 clash with Brisbane Heat. The Test No. 5 will open for Hobart and made 592 runs in BBL08 – ranked behind only Short. Wade is a $187,200 WKP-BAT.
3. SPLIT HIS VALUE
If Short is about $210,000 after this round, you could use his premium value to grab two players with a double. Cameron Boyce was only $118,800 before scoring 97 against Adelaide, while Peter Handscomb was $117,700 in Round 4. Openers Nic Maddinson (Stars) and Sam Harper (Renegades) will also be cheap after Round 4 flops. Turning Short and an underperforming rookie into two DGW players would be a shrewd play.