Six teams in race for three spots

The Brisbane Heat confirmed a place in the playoffs by beating the Melbourne Stars at the MCG on Tuesday. The remaining three places are up for grabs among the other six teams that are still in the race. The Adelaide Strikers, who have won only two of their seven matches, can't get to the minimum of eight points required to qualify. Here is what the teams still in contention need to do to get through to the playoffs.

Sydney Thunder: They need to win their last match, against the Strikers, to have any chance of qualifying and in all probability need a big win given their low Net Run Rate of -0.097. With a game on Wednesday, they do not have the benefit of having a target NRR to aim for. If they win and should the Renegades, the Hurricanes and the Sixers lose their respective games, the Thunder will qualify on eight points irrespective of how big or small their margin of victory is. If any one of the aforementioned teams win, a healthy NRR will be mandatory for the Thunder to qualify.

Melbourne Renegades: The Renegades need to win their last fixture, against the Heat, to get to the required minimum of eight points. A big win will increase their chances of qualifying on NRR ahead of others. The result of the Thunder-Strikers game will give Renegades a target to at least get ahead of the Thunder on NRR. The Renegades will qualify with eight points if the Thunder, the Hurricanes and the Sixers lose their respective games.

Perth Scorchers: Like the Stars, the Scorchers too will confirm a place in the semis if they win their final league match, against the Hurricanes. They could go through even if they lose. If they do lose, the Scorchers will do well to avoid a big loss and keep the other teams' NRRs at bay.

Hobart Hurricanes: Like the other two teams on six points they need to win their final league match in the first place to stand any chance. However, their NRR is the poorest of the three at -0.179. But since the Hurricanes play their game on Saturday, they will have the advantage of having a target NRR to aim for to get ahead of the Renegades, the Thunder and the Scorchers. Even if the Hurricanes do win big, the Renegades are most likely to throw a spanner in the works with their superior NRR of +0.041. For instance, if the Renegades chase down a target of 151 against the Heat in 16 overs, and Thunder a similar target against the Strikers in 13.4 overs, then the Hurricanes would need to chase down 151 in 13 overs to end up above them on NRR (the Scorchers' NRR will automatically slip below the Hurricanes' owing to the heavy defeat). Should the Hurricanes get ahead of the three teams on NRR, they will qualify for the semis as the Stars-Sixers match will then become inconsequential for them. The Hurricanes will need just a win if the Thunder, the Renegades and the Sixers lose their respective games.

Sydney Sixers: Their poor NRR of -1.062 has minimised their chances of qualifying with their current tally of eight points. They could, however, qualify with eight points by the time their match against the Stars begins on Saturday if the the Renegades, the Thunder and the Hurricanes lose their respective games. If any one of these teams wins then the Sixers will need to beat the Stars to qualify.

Melbourne Stars: A win in their final league match against the Sixers will confirm the Stars' place in the playoffs. Even if they lose their final game, they could still get through owing to their healthy NRR of 0.547. They will anyway have the advantage of knowing the minimum required NRR to qualify as they play the last of the league games.