The scene is set for the final two games of the 2023-24 Big Bash League season! The Brisbane Heat and Adelaide Strikers will do battle on Monday night in the Challenger Final, with the winner taking on the Sixers in the Final. Check out our preview and betting tips for the clash below.
BBL13 The Challenger Betting Tips
Heat vs Strikers, Carrara, Monday 22nd January, 7.40pm
Brisbane Heat
The Brisbane Heat squared off against the Sixers on Friday night in the Qualifier, with the winner punching their ticket straight through to the big dance. Bowling first, they kept the Sixers to a manageable total of just 152/8. Spencer Johnson was the standout performer with the ball, taking 2/14 off his four overs while Michael Neser chipped in with 3/27.
In reply, the Heat got off to a slow start with the bat and were chasing tail for the rest of their innings. A constant flow of wickets meant that the Heat couldn’t get in front of the required run-rate, as all of their top five scored in double digits but none of them surpassed 26.
The Heat batting line-up took a hit when Sam Billings departed the squad, and now they could be in even more trouble with the potential loss of Matthew Renshaw. It’s currently unknown whether Renshaw will be cleared to play by Cricket Australia with the Brisbane Test starting on Thursday.
Predicted Heat XI: Josh Brown, Jimmy Pierson, Nathan McSweeney, Matt Renshaw, Max Bryant, Paul Walter, Michael Neser, Xavier Bartlett, Spencer Johnson, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Kuhnemann
Adelaide Strikers
The Strikers pulled off one of the great wins in BBL history on Saturday night when they downed the Scorchers from what many would have considered an unwinnable position. Batting first, the Strikers fell in a hole early, losing key batters in Matthew Short and D’Arcy Short in the powerplay. The Strikers fought back to post a semi-respectable total of 155/7 on the back of a 56 (32) from Jake Weatherald.
The Scorchers, at home, were still the betting favourites when their batting innings kicked off, but that didn’t last long. A brilliant spell of bowling from leg spinners Cameron Boyce and Llyod Pope, who claimed seven wickets between them, helped the Strikers to bowl out Perth for just 105, with more than three overs remaining.
After that win, it’s hard to see the Strikers making any changes to their line-up for the Monday night clash against the Heat.
Predicted Strikers XI: Matthew Short, D’Arcy Short, Jake Weatherald, Thomas Kelly, Karry Nielsen, Ben Manenti, James Bazley, Henry Thornton, David Payne, Cameron Boye, Lloyd Pope
Betting Tips
Earlier in the season I was under the assumption that if the Strikers were to win, Matthew Short would need to have a big game with the bat. And while that does happen more often than not, lately they have proved that they are not a one trick pony and that they have real strength in their spin bowling department even with the glaring Rashid Khan omission.
The Strikers are underdogs here but I love them to continue their cinderella run. Their batting line-up is starting to round into some form with Weatherald dominating the last few games and Matt Short arguably the premier T20 batsman in the world at the moment. D’Arcy Short has a stellar record against the Heat too, averaging 55.0 against them through 11 knocks.
Back the Strikers to be too good here.
Strikers to win
$1.95 (2 Units)
Same Game Multi
Matthew Short 20+ Runs
Cameron Boyce 2+ Wickets
Matthew Short has been far and away the player of BBL13 so far, blasting 509 runs at an average of 72.7, almost 200 runs more than the next best. He has surpassed 20 runs in 8/10 games this year and should bounce back to do so again on Monday.
Cameron Boyce has taken nine wickets in his last five games, headlined by a brilliant performance of 3/20 off 3.2 overs in the final against the Scorcers on Saturday night. Back him to take another two poles here.
