The Thunder will take on the Scorchers on Monday night in the Big Bash League with both teams desperate for a win to strengthen their finals chances. Check out our preview and betting tips for the clash below.
BBL14 Thunder vs Scorchers Betting Tips
Sydney Showground Stadium, Monday 13th January, 7.30pm (AEDT)
Thunder
The Thunder sit in 3rd spot on the BBL table with a 4-3 record through their opening seven games. They have a tough two game stretch with their last two games of the season coming against Scorcher and Sixers, and will likely need to win at least one of those games to hold on to their spot in the finals.
The Thunder played the Hurricanes in Hobart on Friday night, going down by six wickets as the Cane Train continued their BBL14 dominance. Batting first, the Thunder scored 6/164 off their 20 overs, led by captain David Warner, who piled on 88 off 66 balls. In reply, the Thunder bowling attack struggled to contain the Canes, taking just four wickets as Hobart cruised past the total with 19 balls to spare. Expect a few changes to the Thunder line-up after that loss.
Predicted XI: David Warner, Sam Konstas, Matthew Gilkes, Ollie Davies, Hugh Weibgen, Chris Green, George Garton, Nathan McAndrew, Tanveer Sangha, Muhammad Hasnain
Scorchers
The Scorchers looked set to cruise into their fifth straight finals series but have since lost their last three games in a row and now sit outside the top four. With games against the Thunder and Strikers to come, they’ll need to win both games as well as rely on other results to force their way into the finals.
They had the unfortunate task of facing Steve Smith and the Sixers in their last game, as the former Test captain smashed 121 off 64 balls to lead the Sixers to a massive first innings total of 3/220. In reply, the Scorchers fought valiantly to and came within 14 runs of the total, putting up 7/206 on the back of a solid knock from Ashton Turner (66 off 32).
Predicted XI: Sam Fanning, Finn Allen, Aaron Hardie, Cooper Connolly, Ashton Turner, Nick Hobson, Ashton Agar, Andrew Tye, Jason Behrendorff, Mahli Beardman, Lance Morris
Prediction
They have lost their last three games, but I think the Scorchers bounce back here with their season on the line. They were great with the bat against the Sixers in their last game despite failing to get over the line and if they bring that sort of form again on Monday night they should have too much firepower for this Thunder side.
The Scorchers have played seven games at Sydney Showground and have a 4-3 winning record.
Player Prop
The two leading runscorers in BBL14 will be squaring off in this game in the Thunder’s David Warner and the Scorcher’s Cooper Connolly. They average 63.2 and 54.4 respectively this season, and when the two teams faced off on Friday, they combined for 92 runs. I’m expecting them both to get going again on Monday night.
Warner + Connolly 20+ Runs Each
$2.83
