BBL previews: Maxwell could light up Stars as Scorchers aim for hat-trick
Part two of our BBL previews takes a look at Melbourne Stars, Perth Scorchers, Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder
A new-look BBL will begin on Thursday with a reduced 40-game regular season although the squeeze on marquee talent continues to be a challenge. We run the rule over how each side could go. You can read part one here.
Squads as of December 6 and subject to change
Melbourne Stars
Squad Scott Boland, Joe Burns, Hilton Cartwright, Brody Couch, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Liam Dawson, Sam Harper, Campbell Kellaway, Nick Larkin, Glenn Maxwell, Usama Mir, Jono Merlo, Joel Paris, Haris Rauf, Corey Rocchiccioli, Tom Rogers, Mark Steketee, Marcus Stoinis, Olly Stone, Imad Wasim, Beau Webster
How the draft went
Stars' gamble to take Harry Brook with their first pick in the draft (having cheekily tried to take Rashid Khan for the second straight year before Adelaide Strikers intervened with their retention pick) backfired. Brook was always set to be unavailable for the last few games of the tournament but his selection in England's two white-ball squads for the Caribbean in December was not a guarantee at draft time. Once England called, Brook's BBL was cooked and it left Stars without their star recruit.
They also took Stars' favourite Haris Rauf with their second pick but his NOC from the PCB was very late in being approved after he made himself unavailable for Pakistan's Test tour, to the displeasure of Pakistan's new coach and selector. Stars then used their last pick on Pakistan legspinner Usama Mir. There were more established spinners available including Akeal Hosein, however Stars opted for Mir who showed some promise during the ODI World Cup, although he had a very tough day against Australia in Bengaluru.
Stars have since added two left-arm orthodox as overseas replacement players with England's Liam Dawson available for three games while former Pakistan spinner Imad Wasim will join Stars after Christmas and looks a shrewd signing as he will be available for the remainder of the season. England quick Olly Stone is in Australia and has also been training with the Stars squad and could be added as cover for Rauf.
How they stack up
Stars look thin in terms of their overall depth having lost Adam Zampa and Joe Clarke from last season after they finished last with only three wins. But with Glenn Maxwell fully fit and in the form of his life he could single-handedly win them a lot of games early in the season and help the team get on a roll. A lot of the runscoring will fall on his shoulders along with Marcus Stoinis. Sam Harper has found some form in the Sheffield Shield coming off a 66-ball century while Joe Burns has also been in good nick for Queensland after missing the last BBL season with a hamstring injury. Hilton Cartwright and Beau Webster have also been in great Shield form but whether that translates remains to be seen.
Opposition sides will certainly look to target Stars' bowling line-up. Stars have gone bowler-heavy with their overseas picks but the availability issues make that a risky strategy. They are unlikely to see much of Scott Boland due to Test duty. The other new signing Joel Paris has had some injury concerns this year. They've also added Mark Steketee but he will miss the first game due to the Prime Minister's XI match against Pakistan. Maxwell, Stoinis and Webster will be required to do a lot of bowling.
Player to watch
Glenn Maxwell is always the player to watch. He's always done something spectacular in the BBL. But he's never come into a BBL in this kind of form. He's coming off scoring the fastest ODI World Cup century, the first ODI double-century by an Australian male, and another stunning T20I century in a winning chase in India. On top of that, he is bowling as well as ever, having been a vital part of Australia's World Cup title with the ball as much as with the bat. If he's not physically and mentally fatigued, he could have an enormous BBL.
Availability issues
Rauf is due to arrive in Australia on Wednesday, 24 hours before the first game and with Pakistan set for a white-ball tour of New Zealand starting on January 12 the PCB have only approved his NOC for five games up until December 28. He may only play in four if he is rested for the season opener. Mir has also been approved for five games with the PCB wanting to limit his workload ahead of the New Zealand series. Dawson is only signed for the first three matches but Imad's presence after Christmas should provide the Stars with some stability for the final eight matches. Boland is unlikely to be available for the whole season.
Perth Scorchers
Squad Ashton Agar, Jason Behrendorff, Cooper Connolly, Zak Crawley, Stephen Eskinazi, Laurie Evans, Aaron Hardie, Nick Hobson, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kelly, Mitchell Marsh, Hamish McKenzie, Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, Sam Whiteman, Liam Haskett
How the draft went
Replicating what they did in the BBL draft a year earlier, Scorchers passed on their platinum pick. They selected Zak Crawley at pick 16 on the back of his spectacular Ashes campaign in an important signing after the departure of opener Cameron Bancroft. They also selected middle-order batter Laurie Evans, who was player of the final in BBL11 but did not play last season after his contract was terminated following a positive doping test.
How they stack up
Scorchers are the BBL's powerhouse having claimed a record five titles. Their latest challenge is to become the first team to win a hat-trick of titles having fallen short of the feat in BBL05. They will start as arguably the team to beat with Scorchers again backing their talented core of local players.
There will be some tweaks with Crawley replacing Bancroft at the top, while WA Shield captain Sam Whiteman has returned after two seasons with Sydney Thunder. A three-time title-winning player with Scorchers, Whiteman has been in good white-ball form in the Marsh Cup and is also the back-up wicketkeeper to Josh Inglis. Top-order batter Stephen Eskinazi was a late signing having been part of last season's triumph. Scorchers boast a formidable middle order led by Inglis, allrounder Aaron Hardie and captain Ashton Turner.
Their pace bowling is stacked with Jhye Richardson and Lance Morris having returned to domestic cricket from injury layoffs, but Matt Kelly - a key bowler at the death - remains on the sidelines with a quad injury and is expected to miss the early rounds.
An area of concern for Scorchers is their spin options with left-armer Ashton Agar likely to be unavailable for the start of the season due to the calf injury that ruled him out of the World Cup. Left-arm wrist spinner Hamish McKenzie, who recently made his first-class and List A debuts, is also on the sidelines due to a stress fracture in his back. Scorchers lost legspinner Peter Hatzoglou, who signed with Hobart Hurricanes having been an important member of the squad and he was particularly valuable on the slower wickets on the east coast.
Player to watch
With Scorchers' spin stocks severely tested, allrounder Cooper Connolly might just be able to fill the breach. While his powerful batting is a bit more advanced, as he memorably showed in last season's BBL final, Connolly's slow left-arm orthodox bowling is more than useful and he can tie up an end in the middle overs.
There has been much anticipation over Connolly, 20, after his heroics in last season's BBL made him a fan favourite. After making his List A debut to start the domestic season, Connolly was in line for a Shield debut until he suffered a toe injury during a freak boat accident. But he's returned and has opened the batting in the Marsh Cup to underline his versatility. Connolly feels primed to be the type of breakout player that Scorchers seem to unearth almost every season.
Availability issues
Crawley is part of England's ODI and Test squads to India meaning his availability is limited to around six games, while Evans will be available for the regular season before flying off to the UAE's ILT20. Allrounder Mitchell Marsh is in a battle with Cameron Green for the number six Test position making his status for the BBL unclear for the time being. Morris is part of Australia's first Test squad against Pakistan as he eyes an international debut and will likely be around that group for much of the season.
Sydney Sixers
Squad Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird, Tom Curran, Joel Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Hayden Kerr, Todd Murphy, Izharulhaq Naveed, Steve O'Keefe, Kurtis Patterson, Josh Philippe, Jordan Silk, Steven Smith, James Vince
How the draft went
Sixers went with familiarity and brought back club stalwarts Tom Curran (platinum) and James Vince (gold). Chris Jordan was another who they could have retained. "We know what Tom brings," Shipperd said. "He's a great team player, we think he's got fight in him because he's been injured for a couple of seasons now and he's on his way back to his very best form." They also selected England legspinner Rehan Ahmed at bronze but his call-up to England's ODI and T20I squads for the West Indies has put paid to his stint given the limited number of games he would have been available for.
How they stack up
They retain a very experienced core built around the likes of Sean Abbott and Moises Henriques who have been central to Sixers' success over the years. They will hope that Josh Philippe's lean red-ball season does not impact his T20 form and that he can reform a strong pairing with Vince at the top of the order (although Steven Smith will slot in for at least one game). The club will be looking for Todd Murphy to step up in the spin department after they didn't re-sign Nathan Lyon and with Steve O'Keefe at the backend of his career.
Player to watch
Jack Edwards produced some eye-catching Sheffield Shield performances early in the season and if he can have a similar breakthrough in T20 he has the makings of a valuable all-rounder player, particularly the power he could bring the bat. So far the format has been a struggle with 357 runs at a strike-rate of 104.08 in 29 matches and he has yet to bowl a ball. With Dan Christian's retirement, there is a spot for a young allrounder to step up.
Availability issues
Curran and Vince both have ILT20 deals and that tournament overlaps with the BBL finals. Among their domestic players, Smith will play the opening game against Renegades and the club hope also the Sydney derby on January 12 between his Test commitments. Elsewhere they shouldn't be hit by international calls unless Murphy is needed. Abbott is unlikely to push for a Test spot unless there is a spate of fast-bowling injuries.
Sydney Thunder
Squad Cameron Bancroft, Ollie Davies, Liam Doddrell, Matt Gilkes, Chris Green, Alex Hales, Liam Hatcher, Zaman Khan, Nathan McAndrew, Blake Nikitaras, Alex Ross, William Salzmann, Daniel Sams, Gurinder Sandhu, Jason Sangha, Tanveer Sangha, David Warner
How the draft went
They went for an established Thunder player in Alex Hales with their platinum pick, and didn't have to use their retention option, to bring the former England opener back. He made 245 runs in nine matches last season, at a strike-rate of 141.61, and overall is their second-highest run-scorer behind Usman Khawaja. He should be available for the full regular season. They then took Pakistan quick Zaman Khan at gold as a death-bowling option before passing on the final two rounds.
How they stack up
They feel like a bit of a tricky side to read, but if their big names fire they certainly have the makings of a powerful outfit. The role they give Cameron Bancroft will be interesting and they will hope that Ollie Davies' fractured finger picked up in the Sheffield Shield doesn't sideline him for too long - he has the potential to be a gamechanger in the middle order. Liam Hatcher's move from Melbourne Stars bolsters the pace attack while Nathan McAndrew has enjoyed a stunning run in red-ball cricket.
Player to watch
Tanveer Sangha had to watch the entirety of last season from the sidelines after a stress fracture of the back wiped out his summer. That followed two campaigns where he had shone, taking 37 wickets at 17.89 and an economy of 7.52. But he has returned to action in the last few months and shown his skills at the international level with 4 for 31 on his T20I debut against South Africa. He looks primed to be the future of Australian spin bowling across formats.
Availability issues
David Warner won't be available until after the Pakistan Test series, but his retirement from the format opens up a window for him to play the latter part of the tournament. There still remain some questions marks as to when he will take up his ILT20 deal. That brings with it the prospect of him opening with Bancroft, who has signed from Perth Scorchers in one of the big off-season moves, although Bancroft may be Warner's Test replacement and leave the tournament as he arrives. Daniel Sams is expected back from his Abu Dhabi T10 stint in time for the opening game.