Match: Sydney Thunder vs Brisbane Heat, (ST vs BH, Eliminator, BBL 2022/23)
Date: January 27, 2022 – 1:45 PM IST
Venue: Sydney Showground Stadium
After five weeks of non-stop action, we have our five playoffs teams of the Big Bash League 2022-23. Perth Scorchers and Sydney Sixers will compete in the Qualifier. In the Eliminator, we have Sydney Thunder and Brisbane Heat taking on each other, with the winner meeting Melbourne Renegades in the knockout. These two teams will meet at Showground Stadium on Friday, January 27th.
Sydney Thunder secured fourth place in the group stage with 14 points. They won seven matches and lost seven but their net run-rate of -0.716 compared to the Renegades’ -0.027 means they have to play the Eliminator.
Sydney Thunder needed to win their final group match against Melbourne Stars and they barely managed a three-wicket victory. Chris Green claimed 2 for 19 in his four overs while Daniel Sams took 1 for 27 to restrict the opponents to just 119. Sams then smashed a vital 28 off 18 in the second innings.
Brisbane Heat blew their chance of finishing third and had to settle for fifth place after they lost to Hobart Hurricanes. Brisbane claimed 13 points in the group stage with six victories and one no-result. In the final group game, they lost by just two runs in a low scoring nail-biter finish.
Michael Neser (4 for 35) and Spencer Johnson (2 for 20) starred with the ball as they restricted Hobart to 120/9. In response, they were 4 for 30 before Sam Hain (26) and Jimmy Peirson (39) stitched together a 73-run stand for the fifth wicket. However, a few more quick wickets and they needed 10 off the last two overs in three wickets in hand. Very doable but they couldn’t.
Pitch Report and Weather Forecast for ST vs BH, Eliminator, BBL 2022/23
Showground Stadium in Sydney offers good assistance for the bowlers. A total of 32 men’s T20 matches have been played here, with the average first innings score reading 148. Setting the target hasn’t been easy this season, with the average batting first score of just 126 after four games.
The weather in Sydney could be cloudy and humid on Friday evening. There’s under 15% chance of rain while the temperature hovers around 23°C.
Sydney Thunder – Expected XI and Team News
Jason Sangha has returned after recovering from an injury while David Warner will be available for this fixture. The bowling attack has Gurinder Sandhu back from injury as well. He forms the attack with Daniel Sams, Nathan McAndrew, Chris Green and Usman Qadir.
Probable XI – Matthew Gilkes (wk), David Warner, Jason Sangha, Oliver Davies, Alex Ross, Daniel Sams, Ben Cutting, Nathan McAndrew, Chris Green (c), Gurinder Sandhu, Usman Qadir
Brisbane Heat – Expected XI and Team News
Brisbane Heat will have Usman Khawaja leading the side for the last time this season before the Test side leaves for India. They also have Marnus Labuschagne and Matt Renshaw. The bowling unit comprises Michael Neser, Spencer Johnson, James Bazley and spin duo of Mitchell Swepson and Matthew Kuhnemann.
Probable XI – Josh Brown, Usman Khawaja (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Matt Renshaw, Sam Hain, Jimmy Peirson (wk), Michael Neser, James Bazley, Spencer Johnson, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Kuhnemann
Head to head record of ST vs BH
Total Encounters – 18
Sydney Thunder Won – 7
Brisbane Heat Won – 10
No Result – 1
Sydney Thunder lead the last five encounters by 4-1.
Best Captaincy Picks for the ST vs BH match
Oliver Davies: Batter, Sydney Thunder
Oliver Davies has been excellent for Sydney Thunder in this season. He has scored 333 runs from 13 innings at an average of 28 and strike rate of 134. Davies has scored three fifties in the competition and remains a top C/VC option.
Matt Renshaw: All-rounder, Brisbane Heat
Matt Renshaw has scored 232 runs in the ongoing season at an average of 26 and strike rate of 123, with highest score of 90 not-out. He has also bowled eight overs and picked two wickets at 6.25 economy.
Daniel Sams: All-rounder, Sydney Thunder
Daniel Sams has been pretty good with the ball this season, picking 17 wickets at a strike rate of 14.7, with best figures of 4 for 18. Sams hasn’t had a great season with the bat but scored crucial 18-ball 28 in the previous game.
Top Differential Picks
Sam Hain: Batter, Brisbane Heat
Sam Hain had a late introduction in this season but has been impressive. He has scored 143 runs from just five innings at an average of 48 and strike rate of 122, including a fifty. Hain is picked by only 22% of the MPL teams.
Spencer Johnson: Bowler, Brisbane Heat
Spencer Johnson is selected by less than 10% of MPL teams and can offer big differential value. The left arm seamer has picked five wickets in season and is coming off 2/20 in the previous game.
MPL Fantasy XI
Where and what time to watch the match live in India
For those in India, you can watch Australia’s Big Bash League on Sony Sports Network. Watch the Eliminator between Sydney Thunder and Brisbane Heat on Sony Sports 5 at 1:45 PM on Friday. You can also catch the action live on online streaming platform Sony LIV.
Note: The players recommended here need not be a part of the Playing 11 on game day. Users are advised to do their own research also and follow official sources and create their teams.
