FANTASY
Follow UsHobart Hurricanes take on Melbourne Stars in Match 23 of the Big Bash League (BBL) 2020-21 at the Bellerive Oval. The Hurricanes are currently in the third place with 15 points from six matches, while Stars are two spots below them, having accumulated 10 points from five games. While the Hurricanes go into the match at the back of a closely-fought one-wicket win against Brisbane Heat, the Stars will quickly want to forget their 75-run loss over Sydney Thunder and register a resounding victory in this match.
In their 13 meetings so far in the BBL, the Stars have emerged victorious on nine occasions and in the last give matches, the Stars also have a slender 3-2 lead over the Hurricanes.
BBL head-to-head
Overall: Matches – 13 | Stars – 9 Wins | Hurricanes – 4 Wins
Last 5 Matches: Stars – 3 Wins | Hurricanes – 2 Wins
Suggested teams
While you could go for the above team, you also have the option of choosing your own team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. Based on algorithms we come up with six different teams that could fetch crucial points.
Ground details and team combination
The Bellerive Oval, Hobart has hosted six matches this season. In those matches, the bowlers have conceded at an economy rate if 8.2 with a wicket falling every 25.3 runs and 18.5 balls apart.
The fast bowlers have been a little more expensive than the spinners as the former have picked up wickets at regular intervals with a balls per wicket ratio of 16.9 and runs per wicket ratio of 23.5, compared to the spinners for whom the corresponding numbers are 24.1 and 31.3 respectively.
While there’s no doubt that it is the pacers who rule the roost here, it could be a good idea to have one or maybe two spinners in your team, which both teams are not short of.
The average first innings score this season has been 170, while in the second innings, it has dropped down to just 136. The team batting first have gone on to win four matches this season, while only twice has a team successfully chased down a target here.
There could be some interesting match-ups too.
D’Arcy Short has not been in particularly good form with the bat and when he faces Billy Stanlake first-up, it could make for a good contest. The tall pacer has dismissed the Short on a couple of occasions in their five meetings, and moreover, the Hurricanes opener has scored at a strike-rate of just 78.6 in T20s. Stanlake, who has picked up five wickets in his last three matches could once again cause the southpaw some trouble in this match.
Captain selection
When it comes to performers, one need not look beyond Glenn Maxwell. He has scored in excess of 30 in three out of the four innings, including an unbeaten 71 so far and also chips in with some crucial overs. He has scored 179 runs at 59.66 this edition to go with a strike-rate of 146.72. While he looked off colour in the IPL, he managed to return to his hitting best during the T20I series against India and has continued that form into the BBL as well. Another explosive innings perhaps awaits us.
Our Criclytics player projector predicts Roy could score 13-30 runs and pick up 0-1 wickets in this match.
X-Factors
While he went wicketless in the first two games, Billy Stanlake has picked up five scalps in the next three matches and could once again be a nuisance for the opposition in this game, given his ability to generate extra bounce given his height. In the BBL this season so far, Stanlake has picked up a wicket every 19.2 deliveries and at an average of 27.20
Our Criclytics player projector predicts Stanlake could pick up 0-1 wickets in this match.
Ben McDermott carried his excellent form against the Indians at the First-Class level into the competition, scoring 46 and an unbeaten 89 in his first two innings in BBL 10. While his next two innings may not have been of any significance, he would be determined to return to form against a quality bowling attack. He has scored 155 runs at a strike-rate of 140.90 in this edition so far.
Our Criclytics player projector predicts McDermott could score 13-36 runs in this match.
Dawid Malan had an excellent 2020 - a year in which he reached the summit of the ICC T20I rankings. He finished with 397 runs at 49.62 to go with a strike-rate of 142.29 in T20Is last year. He also slammed four fifties from 10 innings in 2020. It's a no-brainer to pick the No. 1 ranked T20I batsman in your fantasy team. He looked to have found his touch in the previous match when he scored 39 off 32 against Brisbane Heat and he could once again be among the runs this time around.
Our Criclytics player projector predicts Malan could score 15-38 runs in this match.
