It’s been a huge year for Australian cricket, from an enthralling Ashes series to World Cup glory in India. However, the cricket machine never stops rolling, and with summer upon us it’s time to preview another huge BBL campaign!
The Perth Scorchers will be gunning for a hat-trick of titles this time around, so it’s about time that the eastern states lift their game.
As usual, we will be bringing you a full preview and betting tips for EVERY game throughout the BBL13 season, so remember to check out our Cricket Tips page regularly for updates.
BBL13 Season Preview & Betting Tips
Championship Prediction
It seems like I say the same thing every year, but once again the Perth Scorchers and Sydney Sixers will start BBL13 as clear title favourites. These two franchises have eight crowns between them, five to Perth and three to the Sixers, while no other team has won multiple titles.
The Scorchers squad is well and truly capable of topping the ranks again this season – Perth have the best local talent and rely little on overseas stars, holding them in good stead for the latter stages of the competition. Importantly, only Laurie Evans is contracted for the ILT20 tournament, which is likely to decimate several squads on the eve of BBL finals.
One of those teams likely to suffer from player availability issues is the Melbourne Renegades, who I expect to fare extremely well until the final few rounds of the season. I can foresee a situation in which the Renegades bank plenty of wins early before falling away, so while they present great value, I can’t back them to go all the way without the likes of De Kock, Clarke and Mujeeb come finals time.
The Sixers should go close again, but they still lack a big fish in the batting department, so it could be another ‘nearly’ season for them.
As such, I’m going to be boring and tip a third straight Scorchers success.
Dark Horse
As previously mentioned, the Renegades will have a very strong squad for some periods of the competition, led by international heavyweights Quinton De Kock and Adam Zampa.
It’s a player pool comprising of accomplished veterans, established state players and international stars – not every franchise can say they tick all those boxes.
After performing well in BBL12 to finish third, the Renegades should absolutely produce better cricket in this edition of the tournament. However, the depth of their personnel will be tested when the internationals pack their bags before finals roll around.
The Melbourne Renegades should qualify for the finals with the talent they possess, the question is whether they can summon the resilience and luck to win finals games when the stars aren’t around.
Team Previews
Adelaide Strikers
Squad: Wes Agar, James Bazley, Cameron Boyce, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Travis Head, Henry Hunt, Thomas Kelly, Chris Lynn, Ben Manenti, D'Arcy Short, Matt Short, Henry Thornton, Rashid Khan (withdrawn), Jamie Overton, Adam Hose, Jake Weatherald, Harry Nielsen, David Payne (overseas replacement for Rashid Khan)
Last season was a disappointing one for Adelaide, with the Strikers finishing seventh after three consecutive finals appearances.
Despite boasting a squad including Matt Short, Chris Lynn, Rashid Khan and Colin De Grandhomme among others, the Strikers managed just five wins, and I can’t see them improving significantly this campaign.
In a devastating setback, Rashid Khan has withdrawn from the entirety of the tournament with a back injury, decimating the bowling stocks. With 98 wickets to his name, Khan has been one of the best bowlers in this tournament over several seasons, so he will be missed dearly.
In terms of other squad changes, English bowling all-rounder Jamie Overton joins the Strikers for BBL13, fresh off being crowned the Hundred Player of the Tournament. He will have a massive role to play this season alongside D’Arcy Short, who has been recruited from Hobart.
Despite being named in the squad, Aussie internationals Alex Carey and Travis Head are not expected to feature.
Considering the losses of Khan, Head and Carey, Adelaide are unlikely to challenge in BBL13.
Predicted Finish: 5th – 6th
Brisbane Heat
Squad: Xavier Bartlett, Josh Brown, Max Bryant, Spencer Johnson, Usman Khawaja, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan McSweeney, Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Will Prestwidge, Matthew Renshaw, Mitchell Swepson, Colin Munro, Sam Billings, Paul Walter, Jack Wildermuth, Jack Wood
Brisbane improved last season to finish fifth, with Michael Neser finishing as the second highest wicket-taker in the competition.
Neser remains the top dog in this squad, a squad that looks relatively thin on paper compared to other franchises.
Experienced overseas batsmen Colin Munro and Sam Billings have re-signed for this campaign, and the pace stocks are strong, but player availability will be vital to Brisbane’s hopes in BBL13, with the bottom five or so players lacking experience.
Predicted Finish: 7th – 8th
Hobart Hurricanes
Squad: Iain Carlisle, Tim David, Paddy Dooley, Nathan Ellis, Peter Hatzoglou, Caleb Jewell, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Mitch Owen, Billy Stanlake, Matthew Wade, Mac Wright, Chris Jordan, Sam Hain, Corey Anderson, Liam Guthrie, Nikhil Chaudhary, Sam Heazlett
Hobart finished a disappointing sixth last season, with stars D’Arcy Short, Ben McDermott and Nathan Ellis underperforming by their lofty standards.
Short has since departed to Adelaide, but local heroes McDermott, Ellis, Matthew Wade and Tim David remain. Plenty will be required of that quartet this season, as I don’t believe this season’s overseas recruits promise as much as the trio of Pakistani’s from BBL12.
I am particularly concerned about Hobart’s top order, but the variety of bowling talent encourages me enough to suggest that the Hurricanes will be back in finals contention.
Predicted Finish: 3rd – 4th
Melbourne Renegades
Squad: Nic Maddinson, Aaron Finch, Jake Fraser-McGurk, MacKenzie Harvey, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, Kane Richardson, Tom Rogers, Peter Siddle, Jon Wells, Will Sutherland, Adam Zampa, Quinton de Kock, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Joe Clarke, Harry Dixon
I’m really excited by the Melbourne Renegades squad for BBL13, which boasts talent, experience and variety in equal measure.
After finishing bottom of the table in three straight seasons, the Renegades climbed to third in BBL12 and should be strong again thanks to the additions of Quinton De Kock, Adam Zampa, Joe Clarke, Nathan Lyon and Peter Siddle.
I expect those signings will perfectly complement the youthful flair of Sutherland, Fraser-McGurk and Harvey, setting up a successful season for the men in red.
This squad has plenty of depth with no obvious weakness, so a finals appearance is likely.
Predicted Finish: 3rd – 4th
Melbourne Stars
Squad: Scott Boland, Joe Burns, Hilton Cartwright, Brody Couch, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Sam Harper, Nick Larkin, Campbell Kellaway, Glenn Maxwell, Joel Paris, Tom Rogers, Mark Steketee, Marcus Stoinis, Beau Webster, Harry Brook (withdrawn), Haris Rauf, Usama Mir, Liam Dawson (overseas replacement for Harry Brook, first three matches only)
The Stars have struggled in recent seasons and that is set to continue in BBL13, with a mix of bad luck and mismanagement leaving Melbourne with a weak squad.
Key pillars Adam Zampa and Joe Clarke have jumped ship to join the Renegades, leaving Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis and Haris Rauf as the marquee men.
Harry Brook was set to be the star signing, but he has withdrawn citing workload concerns.
Usama Mir and Liam Dawson will join Rauf as international recruits, but neither promises to dominate the competition.
With that in mind, I’m predicting another poor campaign for the Stars.
Predicted Finish: 7th – 8th
Perth Scorchers
Squad: Ashton Agar, Jason Behrendorff, Cooper Connolly, Aaron Hardie, Nick Hobson, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kelly, Mitch Marsh, Hamish McKenzie, Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, Sam Whiteman, Zak Crawley, Laurie Evans
The reigning champions will attack the new season with a similar squad, albeit missing Cameron Bancroft, who has headed to Sydney, and Cameron Green, who has passed on playing in BBL13.
Josh Inglis, Mitch Marsh, Jason Behrendorff, Jhye Richardson, Aaron Hardie, Ashton Agar and Ashton Turner have all represented Australia in this format, so there is still ample talent in the squad to strive for another crown, and the additions of overseas players Zak Crawley and Laurie Evans will only aid that push.
Perth’s only weakness is in the spin department, so it will be interesting to see if they can fill that void before the season kicks off.
Predicted Finish: 1st – 2nd
Sydney Sixers
Squad: Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird, Joel Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Hayden Kerr, Todd Murphy, Steve O'Keefe, Kurtis Patterson, Josh Philippe, Jordan Silk, Tom Curran, James Vince, Rehan Ahmed, Steve Smith
Like the Melbourne Renegades, the Sydney Sixers have a stacked squad with plentiful depth.
The men in magenta have duked it out with Perth for BBL bragging rights in many a season, and that could well be the case again in BBL13.
I can’t spot any holes in the Sixers squad – they bat deep, have both quicks and spinners in healthy supply and can cover for any injuries/absences.
The difference a good and great campaign for Sydney could well be how often Steve Smith takes to the field, given his massive impact last season.
Predicted Finish: 1st – 2nd
Sydney Thunder
Squad: Cameron Bancroft, Ollie Davies, Matt Gilkes, Chris Green, Liam Hatcher, Nathan McAndrew, Blake Nikitaras, Alex Ross, Daniel Sams, Gurinder Sandhu, Jason Sangha, Tanveer Sangha, David Warner, Alex Hales, Zaman Khan
The Thunder will be looking to build on the consistency of their recent campaigns by qualifying for the finals again in BBL13.
Cameron Bancroft is a massive addition at the top of the order, and he should partner nicely with big hitter Alex Hales.
Furthermore, I expect better bowling performances given the development of Nathan McAndrew and Tanveer Sangha.
However, I am slightly concerned about the Thunder’s inconsistent middle order of Ross, Davies, Sangha and Gilkes, which could prove to be their undoing this campaign.
Predicted Finish: 5th – 6th
