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Clash of the Titans: Scorchers face Sixers as the final hurdle in their dream run

Abhishek Singh


The 10th edition of Big Bash League has boiled down to a clash of titans. It has taken 60 matches to get here and what 60 matches have they been. The BBL this season has dodged a close bullet in Covid-19 and the restrictions that come with it, it has survived the new BBL rules that seemed bizarre ahead of the tournament. When that dust settled, the viewers were dealt a crazy final matchday where 5 out of the eight teams battled out for the last two positions in the playoff stages of the tournament.

But we are here now, the final game of this season. It is difficult to argue that anyone but Perth Scorchers and Sydney Sixers deserved a spot in the final. The Scorchers have literally had a dream run-up to the final. Failing to win a single match from their first four games, then turned their campaign around winning the eight out of their next nine. The only team that they were not able to defeat in their nine-game run was the Sixers. As fate would have it, Perth lost one more time against Sixers in their run-up to the BBL Finals.

However, they fought back and won the Challenger against an in-form Brisbane Heat comprehensively to put the pressure back on the Sixers, who will be under pressure to defend the title at their home ground, the mighty SCG. The Sydney team have had a good time, winning nine out of their 14 league games and topping the league table before beating Scorchers in the Qualifier. 

Thus, the final is going to be a real clash of the titans in all sense. 

Dynamic Perth batting, a cause of concern for Sixers

The one thing that Perth did for their revival in the tournament was the spike in their bowling form. Jhye Richardson was impressive in particular and it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that he bowled Perth back into the tournament. Similarly, there was also a slow revival in the batting fortunes of the Scorchers with the veterans, Colin Munro and Josh Inglis leading the charge. 

So far Munro has scored 441 runs while 391 runs have been scored by Inglis and this solid foundation has given the freedom to the likes of Liam Livingstone, Mitchell Marsh, and Jason Roy to go for the kill right from the first ball. 

Perth would like the two to continue being reliable. And at the same time, the team would also want their three quicks in Richardson, Jason Behrendorff, and Andrew Tye to continue their rich vein of form. If all these things fall in place, Perth is surely in with a good chance. 

Josh Philippe and Ben Dwarshuis: Two men who matter the most for Sixers 

In this entire campaign, the two players that have performed consistently for the Sixers are Josh Philippe with the bat and Ben Dwarshuis with the ball. The two have been able to guide the Sixers ship towards the shore more often than not. While Philippe has 499 runs from 15 innings, Dwarshuis has 21 wickets in this year’s BBL so far. Philippe is going to be the anchor while Sixers bat and then the likes of Dan Christin, James Vince, and Moises Henriques can then free their arms to get the desired results while batting. 

Similarly, with Steve O’Keefe, Carlos Brathwaite, and Jackson Bird in the ranks, Dwarshuis’ role is going to be that of the key wicket-taker, and if he fulfils that the rest of the players can contribute as well. 

Sixers vs Scorchers: Match Details

Match: Final

Date and Time: 06th Feb, 02:10 pm IST, 07:40 pm Local, 08:40 am GMT

Venue: Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney

Broadcast and Live Stream: Sony SIX and Sony LIV

Pitch Report

This is going to be the first game at the SCG in this year’s BBL. A flat batting track, the SCG would hopefully have a bit more spike in the wicket to offer some assistance to pacers and make sure that the ball comes on to the bat real nice. 

As previous encounters are concerned any total between 160-185 is going to be challenging on this wicket. 

Weather and Bat Flip

Rain has been predicted in the evening of the 6th in Sydney. With 94% cloud cover and rain in the offing, any skipper winning the bat flip would look to bowl first keeping Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in mind. Although a reserve day has been announced by CA if the match gets washed away on Saturday, even after that the choice to bowl first is an obvious one. 

Sixers Strongest XI

Josh Philippe (wk), James Vince, Daniel Hughes, Moises Henriques (c), Jordan Silk, Daniel Christian, Carlos Brathwaite, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Steve OKeefe, Jackson Bird

Scorchers  Strongest XI

Liam Livingstone, Cameron Bancroft, Colin Munro, Josh Inglis (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Ashton Turner (c), Aaron Hardie, Jhye Richardson, Andrew Tye, Jason Behrendorff, Fawad Ahmed

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