The Hobart Hurricanes will be hosting the Sydney Thunder at Blundstone Arena this Afternoon to kick off 2024 and boy, will this be a banger.
Two sides who have noticeably underperformed this season going toe-to-toe on a small field means one thing, plenty of sixes will be hit this arvo.
One player who I’m looking forward to watching is Ollie Davies.
Davies averages 29 with the bat against the hurricanes, however, he averages 45 at Blundstone Arena.
Sam Hain to my surprise hasn’t been playing his best cricket as of late.
This time last year, he was hitting runs left, right and centre for the Brisbane Heat and since making the move to the Canes, it’s been rather underwhelming.
Hain is due for a great performance and there’s no better way to start than on the first day of 2024.
Hurricanes skipper Nathan Ellis has been playing out of his shell since receiving the ‘c’ next to his name.
With four wickets to his name this season, it’s been disappointing to his standard however the Australian T20 quick has been very economical with an average of 8.2, his changeups will be key if the Canes want any chance of winning this Afternoon.
Daniel Sams has been in career-best form, from 4/2 in his final over against the Stars to 4/1 against the Heat in his final over, he’s been the key death bowler to the Thunder to stop them from chasing more runs than they should’ve.
But the problem for Sams is that there’s only so much he can do considering the batting of the Thunder has been disappointing, to say the least.
Sams currently has the BKT Golden Arm at the time of writing but will he have it at the end?
At the rate he’s going, his chances are good but today’s game will be interesting to see if he can bowl well on a smaller ground.
Here is my suggested bet for today’s game.
Same Game Multi
- Hurricanes to win
- Sam Hain 20+ runs
- Ellis 1+ wicket
- Davies 20+ runs
- Daniel Sams 1+ Wicket
Two of the best teams in the competition this season square up to wrap up New Year’s Day and this will be a game that could potentially be the game of the season.
What will the Brisbane Heat provide against the veteran experience of the Sydney Sixers?
Although Brisbane doesn’t have a great record against the Sixers, they’ve won two of the last three games, with the third game being washed out.
No Tom Curran once again tonight, however, we’ll be waiting to see how who will step up in replacement for him.
In my opinion, someone like Sean Abbott is the perfect candidate for that role.
The Diverse arsenal in pace and changeups is always helpful, particularly in a T20 setting.
Spencer Johnson has been on an absolute tear this season, creating the big moments and snagging wickets that have been helping the Heat get over the line.
The IPL Millionaire is a dangerous bowler, and it was shown on the 27th bowling to Alex Hales, who never really recovered after that and he was repeatedly backing away from the ball to avoid getting hit in the box again.
Moises Henriques has been a player who is yet to fire for the Sixers this season.
The Portugal-born New South Welshman has been an average starter to a season in his entire career, however, with the pressure of his teammates getting out around him, I think he will have a textbook innings.
The Brisbane Heat performance from 1-6 has been nothing short of sublime, so who do I think their star player will be tonight?
Sam Billings is the player I’ll be going with, tonight.
Billings has all the motivation, from being one of the leaders at the Heat to the Sixers not taking him in the BBL draft last year, he has all the hard work, dedication and motivation needed to help the Heat win this game.
Here are my suggested selections for tonight’s game.
Same Game Multi
- Heat to win.
- Henriques 20+ runs
- Abbott 1+ wicket
- Spencer Johnson 1+ Wicket
- Sam Billings 20+ Runs