Published: 14th Dec,2020 11:49AM
On head-to-head count, the Heat are leading the Thunder by a margin of 8-2.
Sydney Thunder and Brisbane Heat got off to similar starts in the 2020-21 edition of the Big Bash League. Both teams lost their opening games. And their defeats were against Glenn Maxwell’s Melbourne Stars, the 2019-20 BBL runners-up.
The Heat brought in quite a few faces and inexperience clearly showed as they were bowled out for 125 runs inside their quota of 20 overs. The Thunder, on the other hand, had every chance of turning over the Stars, but a batting collapse halted their surge.
Moreover, the fact that on the head-to-head count, they are 2-8 behind the Heat, won’t be giving them much confidence. As far as the Heat are concerned, they have signed Joe Denly and it’s not yet known whether or not he has joined the squad ahead of their next encounter.
Pitch and Conditions
The pitch in the first two games at the venue was a pretty sporting one. Run-making wasn’t all that tough. But batters need to ensure that once they get their eye in, they don’t throw their wickets away.
Once a team score above 160, it might be difficult to chase the target. The temperature during game-time will be around the 18 degrees Celsius mark. The humidity will mostly be in the high-60s.
Average Score
147 (2 matches in BBL 2020-21)
Record of the chasing teams
Won – 1; Lost – 1
Playing Combinations for THU vs HEA
Sydney Thunder
Usman Khawaja, Alex Hales, Callum Ferguson (C), Alex Ross, Ben Cutting, Daniel Sams, Chris Green, Nathan McAndrew, Baxter Holt (WK), Jonathan Cook, Tanveer Sangha
Bench- Arjun Nair, Chris Tremain, Matthew Gilkes, Olivier Davies, Brendan Doggett, Alex Ross, Adam Milne
Brisbane Heat
Max Bryant, Sam Haezlett, Chris Lynn (C), Daniel Lawrence, Tom Cooper, Jimmy Pierson (WK), Simon Milenko, Jack Wood, Xavier Bartlett, Matthew Kuhnemann, Ben Laughlin
Bench- James Bazley, Connor Sully
Probable Top Performers for THU vs HEA
Alex Hales– Sydney Thunder
Alex Hales was one of the positive points for the Thunder in the defeat in their previous match. The right-hander smashed 46 runs off 41 balls with the help of four fours and two sixes.
It was Clint Hinchcliffe, who eventually accounted for his wicket. Hales has a significant amount of experience and the Thunder would be hoping for the top-order batsman to again fire on all cylinders.
Chris Lynn– Brisbane Heat
Chris Lynn has been a linchpin of the Heat batting unit over many years and has scored a number of half-centuries. In the last game, he started with a four and a six, scoring a run-a-ball 20.
But he perished to Nathan Coulter-Nile in a bid to up the ante. Once he got out, the Heat’s innings never gained any sort of momentum. He will be looking to make amends and get a big score under his belt.
Broadcast Details
Match timings – 07:15 PM local time, 01:45 PM IST
TV – Sony Ten Network
Live Streaming – Sony LIV