Venue: Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Pitch Report: The SCG was the venue which saw the most runs, including two centuries, during the T20 World Cup in November.It has continued to be a batter-friendly surface in BBL12 and we saw 268 runs in a rain-reduced 14-over per side
game earlier in the tournament. Expect a quick surface and a fast outfield for this contest.
Match Preview: The top two teams in the 2022-23 Big Bash League go head to head as Sydney Sixers host Perth Scorchers. These two sides have contested the last two BBL finals and this game promises to be another entertaining contest. The SCG was the venue which saw the most runs, including two centuries, during the T20 World Cup in November. It has continued to be a batter-friendly surface in BBL12 and we saw 268 runs in a rain-reduced 14-over per side game earlier in the tournament. Expect a quick surface and a fast outfield for this contest. Both teams come into this game in exceptional form in Big Bash League 2022/23. Sydney Sixers have won six, lost one and had one no-result from their last eight matches. Perth Scorchers have a marginally better record with seven wins and one defeat from their last eight. However, it is the Scorchers who have been dominating their opponents and have won their last three games by margins of nine wickets, eight wickets and seven wickets. We expect them to maintain their winning streak in this game. Irrespective of the format, any team would benefit from the likes of Steve Smith and Nathan Lyon coming back into the squad.
We expect Smith to replace James Vince at the top of the order with the English batter having joined up with Gulf Giants in the ILT20.The Scorchers handed a debut to England white-ball international left-arm pace bowler David Payne in Match 39.He got a wicket with his second delivery and will enjoy the speed and bounce of the SCG wicket.
Probable XI:
Sydney Sixers:
Josh Philippe (wk), James Vince, Kurtis Patterson, Moises Henriques (c), Jordan Silk, Daniel Christian, Hayden Kerr, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Chris Jordan, Todd Murphy
Perth Scorchers:
Cameron Bancroft, Stephen Eskinazi, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis (wk), Ashton Turner (c), Nick Hobson, Ashton Agar, Matthew Kelly, Andrew Tye, David Payne, Lance Morris
