The Perth Scorchers launched their BBL title defence in fine style last week, and on Wednesday night they will look to go 2-0 against the winless Hobart Hurricanes.
Perth Stadium will be rocking for this one, as the locals enjoy another display of high-quality cricket post the first test match of the summer.
Josh Nevett provides his full match preview and betting tips below.
BBL13 Scorchers vs Hurricanes Betting Tips
Perth Stadium, Wednesday 20th December, 7:15pm (AEDT)
Perth Scorchers
The Perth Scorchers picked up where they left off last season against the Stars, destroying the Melbourne side by seven wickets in a dominant display.
Bowling first, Jason Behrendorff (3/28) and Jhye Richardson (2/20) did the bulk of the damage up top, preventing the Stars from gathering any momentum as they stumbled to 101.
In reply, every batsman got a start as the Scorchers chased the meagre total within 14 overs for the loss of three wickets. All in all, a comprehensive performance from the best team in BBL history.
Unfortunately for Hobart, Perth’s line-up is set to be even stronger for this encounter, with import Zak Crawley and local stars Lance Morris and Ashton Agar joining the squad. All are best XI players, so the likes of Nick Hobson, Hamish McKenzie and Cooper Connolly may be unlucky to miss out.
It shows the depth that the Scorchers have to play with, a big reason why they will be hard to beat again in BBL13.
Predicted XI: Eskinazi, Crawley, Hardie, Inglis (wk), Turner, Evans, Agar, Richardson, Tye, Morris, Behrendorff
Hobart Hurricanes
Hobart followed up an underwhelming BBL12 campaign with a disappointing BBL13 opener, going down to the Sydney Sixers by six wickets.
Despite boasting a talented batting group, the Hurricanes mustered just 8/135, with opener Caleb Jewell (42 off 24) the standout. Wade, McDermott and David all missed out, which simply can’t continue if Hobart are to push for a finals berth.
The men in purple were relatively tidy with the ball, Kiwi Corey Anderson taking 2/10, however there weren’t enough runs on the board. Furthermore, tearaway quick Riley Meredith injured his side, creating question marks over his availability for Round 2.
The Hurricanes don’t have the same calibre of reinforcements as Perth to call upon, so expect a similar XI here.
Predicted XI: Jewell, Wade (wk), McDermott, Hain, David, Anderson, Owen, Jordan, Ellis, Dooley, Meredith
Match Prediction
It’s hard to go past the Scorchers here.
Perth will enjoy the fast, bouncy home conditions provided by Optus Stadium, which will suit their four-pronged pace attack. In addition, the Scorchers have a near full strength group of batters to choose from, while Hobart will be forced to rely on the same names that failed to fire in Game 1.
Whilst the Hurricanes have a good record in WA, I find it tough to see them halting Perth’s momentum on Wednesday.
Perth Scorchers to Win
$1.53 (3 Units)
Same Game Multi
Hardie hit 20 for the second consecutive time in BBL13, after starring in the last campaign with 460 runs at an average of 42. The hard hitting number three will relish playing in home conditions here, so back him to top 15.
When Richardson is fit, he is a force to be reckoned with, and that was clear at the MCG last week. Richardson took two wickets against the Stars and comes up against a similarly fragile batting unit on Wednesday.
Match Betting – Perth Scorchers
Player to Score 15+ Runs – Aaron Hardie
To Take 2+ Wickets – Jhye Richardson
