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BBL: Buoyant Heat look to halt the Thunder express at Gabba

Abhishek Singh∙ Jan 4 2021, 12:02 AM

Brisbane Heat after a thrilling victory over the Sydney Sixers would look to halt another winning express, the across town neighbours of the Sixers, the Thunder. Thunder have looked supreme in the tournament so far, especially after the early defeat to Stars. But Heat are boxed to after a thrilling finish to their last fixture against the then table-toppers Sixers and would not mind beating another table topper. 

However, beating Thunder is anything but easy, especially with that long batting lineup consisting of some very diverse players who raise their hand at the time of trouble. The bowling line up is equally impressive with the likes of Chris Green and Daniel Sams leading a young but competitive attack. 

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Boosted by Lynn's return, Heat would go for the kill

The Brisbane franchise would finally have their captain in the mix as Chriss Lynn has now been allowed to play after he was disallowed to play the next three games, after the Heat’s second BBL 10 fixture against the Thunder. He was reprimanded for breaching the movement protocol and interacting with a member of the crowd. 

An already strong looking batting lineup which has the likes of Joe Denly, Joe Burns and Lewis Gregory along Jimmy Peirson would get a much needed quick scoring pro at the start of the innings. In his last match, Lynn, 30, had scored 69 and he would love to continue from where he had left against the Thunder at Manuka Oval. 

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Along with Lynn the good form of Gregory, both with the bat and ball and that of Mujeeb too would be a pivotal factor in favour of the Heat ahead of this important contest. A victory here and the team from the land of the deserts would be up and running for the race to the Playoffs.  

Thunder would back batsmen to strike

In all the games won, it has always been the batters who have worked extensively well for a Thunder victory, right from game two onwards. Be it by making huge totals or by standing tall in the face of tough challenges. The main aspect of batting is that it isn’t dependent on a single person. 

Be it the skipper Callum Ferguson, openers Alex Hales and Usman Khawaja or the new entrant Sam Billings. All of them have risen to the occasion as and when required. This time around too, they would be hoping that someone or the other takes up the responsibility. 

Ben Cutting would be in the line of course since it is his home ground where the match would be taking place and he himself would be itching to have a crack at the game. He could well turn out to be a game-changer for the Thunder. 

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Heat vs Thunder: Match Details

Venue: The Gabba, Brisbane

Date and Time: January 4, 01:45 AM IST, 06:15 PM Local, 08:15 AM IST

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Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network, Sony LIV

Pitch Report

Although on a slower side in previous games, prior to the last one, the Gabba pitch finally showed it’s true colour in the match between Heat and Sixers. A pitch that had something for everyone gave the audiences a great time in the game, which resulted in a last-over thriller. A similar wicket would be expected in this game too.  

Weather and Bat Flip

Considering that there would be 87% cloud cover and 25% chance of a shower and also the last four matches, where Heat have chased, in this match too, teh team winning the toss would look to field first and chase down a target as the wicket gets a bit better to bat on. 

Heat Strongest XI

Max Bryant, Joe Burns, Chris Lynn (c), Joe Denly, Jack Wildermuth, Lewis Gregory, Jimmy Peirson (wk), James Bazley, Mark Steketee, Xavier Bartlett, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 

Thunder Strongest XI

Usman Khawaja, Alex Hales, Callum Ferguson (c), Oliver Davies, Sam Billings (wk), Daniel Sams, Ben Cutting, Chris Green, Nathan McAndrew, Chris Tremain, Tanveer Sangha

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BBL: Hurricanes on a move, face an off track Stars looking for redemption

The last time these two teams met was not long ago when the Stars, even after reaching the closing distance of a victory, couldn't finish the game and choked on it. This was however not the first time that Stars gave away a game like that. In fact, they have ended up losing their last three games, two of which were pretty close affairs while in one they were just blown away by the Thunder team. Hurricanes on the other hand have had a solid first half in the tournament, winning five of their seven matches, and are at their position just two points below the table-toppers Thunder. Therefore a Malan strong team would like to continue on their winning ways before their stalwarts in Matthew Wade and Tim Paine join for a final hurrah. It can't just be Maxwell all the time for Stars In their last two games that they lost, Stars haven’t really been able to get any help from other players apart from the skipper Glenn Maxwell. The matter of fact is that nobody apart from Nicholas Pooran even tried to stand alongside him during the batting. The likes of Marcus Stoinis, Hilton Cartwright, and Nic Maddinson really haven’t got going and that is a worrying sign for a team that was flawless last year. The bowling has not been up to the mark either and with Adam Zampa serving a two-match ban, it has weakened more than one would have thought. Added to that is the injury to Nathan Coulter Nile and the nonavailability of Dibar Hussain. But it is in these circumstances only that the Stars have to pick themselves up and show what they are made up of as a team. 'Canes look to continue the momentum Hurricanes on the other hand are in a good form and would want to make the best use of home conditions to get as many points as possible before playing away games. The combination of batting giants Colin Ingram and Dawid Malan along with some disciplined bowling from Scott Boland and Nathan Ellis has given Hurricanes what they were looking for. In this combination, the role of all-rounders like James Faulkner and Tim David becomes even more important. And if Hurricanes are able to strike the right balance once again, they might as well be in for another victory. Hurricanes vs Stars: Match Details Venue: Blundstone Arena, Hobart Date and Time: January 4, 10:35 AM IST, 04:05 PM Local, 5:05 AM GMT Broadcaster: Sony Sports Network, Sony LIV Pitch Report It has been a trend in Hobart that true wickets would have something both for the bowlers and the batters and that continued even in the last game. An average score and a good fight between the ball and the bat. That would be on the menu in this game too. Bat Flip and Weather According to the Meteorological department, the city could witness up to five hours of rain in the morning and the cloud cover would remain throughout the day. The game starts at 1605 hrs local time and hence the captains would keep rain, clouds, and duck-worth lewis at the back of their minds while coming for the bat flip. Hence a captain deciding to field first would be taken in as a normal decision. Melbourne Stars Strongest XI Marcus Stoinis, Nick Larkin, Nic Maddinson, Hilton Cartwright, Glenn Maxwell(c), Nicholas Pooran(w), Ben Dunk, Liam Hatcher, Lance Morris, Billy Stanlake, Zahir Khan Hobart Hurricanes Strongest XI D'Arcy Short, Ben McDermott (wk), Dawid Malan, Peter Handscomb (c), Colin Ingram, Tim David, Johan Botha, Nathan Ellis, Scott Boland, Riley Meredith, Sandeep Lamichhane

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Daily Round Up | January 3: India on verge of losing hosting rights for World T20 2021

The Indian cricket team has faced some backlash after resisting to travel to Brisbane for the final Test against Australia. England have reached Sri Lanka for the two-match Test series. Here is the daily round-up of the day from the cricket world. Queensland Government lashes out at Indian team The Indian team had been reluctant in travelling to Brisbane for the final Test against Australia. The team members are not keen on going to Queensland as they don’t want to be another bio-bubble. Queensland has sent a stern message that the Indian players will not be able to escape the hotel quarantine but won’t be locked in the rooms either. “We’ve worked with them so that they can have bubbles within that hotel,” Queensland’s Chief Health Officer Dr Jeanette Young said on Sunday. The members of the Queensland government made it clear that the team had to obey the instructions. “If the Indians don’t want to play by the rules, don’t come,” The state’s Health Shadow Minister Ros Bates said. England arrives in Sri Lanka The England team has arrived in Sri Lanka for a two-match Test series. The series is scheduled to begin on January 14 while the second clash will start from January 22 in Galle. Sri Lanka are presently in South Africa for the two-match Test series. India might lose 2021 World T20 hosting rights The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), ICC and the Indian Government are at loggerheads over tax exemption issues. The international cricketing authority has given BCCI the last warning regarding obtaining a full tax exemption certificate for the world event. The BCCI will have to play to pay Rs 906 crores in taxes if they are to be granted full exemption by the Finance Ministry of Government of India or hosting the T20 World Cup in the nation this year. "The matter was discussed for 10 to 15 minutes, after which the house authorized the BCCI office-bearers to deal with the issue. But what was evident was that all the office-bearers were not on the same page vis-a-vis the question of whether the BCCI should forgo the hosting rights if the government doesn't grant full tax exemption. Some members said it was a matter of prestige - izzat ka sawal hai -- that India should pay the tax and host the World Cup if it comes to that," the official told IANS. CSA put a hold on transformation plans CSA has put a hold on the transformation plans and the interim board has gone back on its promise of appointing black and brown consultants exclusively despite committing to the same to the government. "The entire [transformation targets] document adopted by the previous board has been put on hold," interim board member Judith February told reporters on Sunday. "We are taking legal advice [regarding] the document and whatever obligations CSA had in terms of it." Rohit Sharma and other four to travel with Indian team India’s newly-appointed Test vice-captain Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Navdeep Saini, Shubman Gill and Prithvi Shaw will board the flight with the Indian team to Sydney. The five players were put into isolation after an alleged bio-bubble breach.

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BBL10 | Adelaide Strikers vs Sydney Sixers: SS make light work of Strikers

The Sydney Sixers romped past Adelaide Strikers in an utterly dominating performance to win the 26th game of the KFC Big Bash League to register their 5th win of the tournament. The Sixers are currently at the top of the table with 21 points looking comfortable to finish in the top three. Despite a brilliant partnership between Jonathan Wells and Jake Weatherald the Strikers could only post 150 on the board and at the end of the day, it didn’t prove to be enough as a solid batting performance from the Sixers saw them overhauling the target with two overs to spare. Chasing the target of 151, the Sixers got off to a perfect stat courtesy a free-flowing partnership between the opening duo Joshua Philippe and Jack Edwards. The duo shared a 47-run stand in 4.1 overs before the dismissal of Jack Edwards. Philippe’s stroke-filled knock was studded with 5 fours and a six which helped them lay the foundation for the run chase. Yet again it was Rashid Khan who wrecked the top order by removing Edwards and Philippe in quick time. The run rate came down a bit but it was well within the reach despite the loss of 3 wickets. The 5th wicket partnership proved to be the final nail in the coffin as far as the Strikers were concerned. James Vince and Jordan Silk shared an unbeaten stand of 71 runs to ensure that they reached the target without any more hiccups. Vince looked in ominous touch from the outset and his unbeaten knock of 45 came in just 33 deliveries including 3 fours and a six while Silk continued his good run in the tournament remaining unbeaten on 38 of 28 deliveries which were laced with 6 classy boundaries. Earlier in the day, it was Sydney Sixers skipper Daniel Hughes who won the toss and put the Strikers in. They were jolted with two early blows in the first two overs as Ben Dwarshuis and Ben Manenti accounted for Philip Salt and Matt Renshaw in their very first overs. With the score reading 7/2, the Strikers needed to steady the ship before going for the big shots. Alex Carey and Jonathan Wells shared a 64 runs stand but were unable to up the scoring rate. Carey departed after scoring a run a ball 31 but the Strikers still needed a big finish to post something substantial. Following the wicket of Carey, Wells was joined by Jack Weatherald and the duo shared an unbeaten 79 runs stand but could only get their side to a score of 150 in their allotted 20 overs. Wells struck the ball well but the fall of wickets in the initial phase didn’t really allow them to press on the accelerator. While Wells scored 66 of 56 deliveries which included 8 fours, Weatherald looked in good touch and eventually remained unbeaten on 34 of 24 deliveries studded with a four and a couple of sixes. Some mighty blows in the final few overs propelled them to a score of 150 but it was always going to be a difficult proposition to defend that total in front of a star-studded Sydney Sixers batting line-up.