Latest team news and broadcast details as Sydney Thunder and Adelaide Strikers open their season in Canberra
Sydney Thunder v Adelaide Strikers: match preview
Match facts
Who: Sydney Thunder v Adelaide Strikers
What: Match 3, KFC BBL|14
Where: Manuka Oval, Canberra
When: Tuesday, December 17. Bat flip at 6.30pm AEDT, first ball at 7.15pm AEDT
How to watch: Channel Seven, 7plus, Fox Cricket, Kayo Sports
Buy tickets: Tickets are on sale here
Live scores: Match Centre
Highlights, news and reactions after the match: cricket.com.au, the CA Live and Big Bash apps
Officials: Mike Graham-Smith and Simon Lightbody (field), Claire Polosak (third), Roberto Howard (fourth), Kepler Wessels (match referee)
Match squads
Sydney Thunder: David Warner (c), Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Sam Billings, Ollie Davies, Lockie Ferguson, Chris Green, Sam Konstas, Nathan McAndrew, Blake Nikitaras, Sherfane Rutherford, Daniel Sams, Jason Sangha, Tanveer Sangha.
It will be a club debut for Wes Agar, Lockie Ferguson, Sam Konstas and Sherfane Rutherford if they are to feature for the Thunder XI in this match.
Sam Billings is set for a return to the Thunder after a two-year stint at Brisbane Heat.
Blake Nikitaras is in the squad after coming in as a replacement player for Nic Maddinson who is likely to be out for the entire season due to a finger injury.
Adelaide Strikers: Matt Short (c), Fabian Allen, James Bazley, Cam Boyce, Chris Lynn, Harry Nielsen, Jamie Overton, Lloyd Pope, Alex Ross, Liam Scott, D'Arcy Short, Henry Thornton, Jake Weatherald.
West Indies international Fabian Allen is set to make his Big Bash debut for the Strikers.
Alex Ross returns to the Strikers from the Thunder and Liam Scott is in the squad after coming in as a local replacement player for Travis Head.
Club news
Sydney Thunder
Adelaide Strikers
Get the latest
Top performers
Most Runs
BBL|14 BKT Golden Bat
| Player | Total |
|---|---|
1
Cooper Connolly
C Connolly
|
351 |
|
2
David Warner
D Warner
|
346 |
|
3
Mitchell Owen
M Owen
|
308 |
|
4
Glenn Maxwell
G Maxwell
|
297 |
|
5
Marcus Stoinis
M Stoinis
|
296 |
|
6
Matthew Renshaw
M Renshaw
|
280 |
|
7
Max Bryant
M Bryant
|
259 |
|
8
Alex Ross
A Ross
|
256 |
Most Wickets
BBL|14 BKT Golden Arm
| Player | Total |
|---|---|
|
1
Jason Behrendorff
J Behrendorff
|
17 |
|
2
Tom Rogers
T Rogers
|
16 |
|
3
Mark Steketee
M Steketee
|
15 |
|
4
Lance Morris
L Morris
|
15 |
|
5
Lloyd Pope
L Pope
|
15 |
|
6
Spencer Johnson
S Johnson
|
13 |
|
7
Henry Thornton
H Thornton
|
12 |
|
8
Xavier Bartlett
X Bartlett
|
12 |
Most sixes scored
BBL|14
| Player | Total |
|---|---|
|
1
Glenn Maxwell
G Maxwell
|
26 |
|
2
Mitchell Owen
M Owen
|
22 |
|
3
Cooper Connolly
C Connolly
|
19 |
|
4
Matthew Renshaw
M Renshaw
|
17 |
|
5
Tim David
T David
|
15 |
|
6
Max Bryant
M Bryant
|
14 |
|
7
Josh Brown
J Brown
|
12 |
|
8
Jake Fraser-McGurk
J Fraser-McGurk
|
12 |
Local knowledge
Rapid stats
- Adelaide Strikers have won their last five BBL matches against the Sydney Thunder – the Strikers' longest winning run against a single team in the history of the competition.
- Sydney Thunder have won only one of their last nine BBL matches – a five-wicket victory against the Melbourne Stars (December 23, 2023); the Thunder have lost each of their five games since then, the last and only time they recorded a longer losing run was a competition-record 19-match span from 2011-2014.
- Adelaide Strikers (67 per cent) and Sydney Thunder (63 per cent) had the best batting good connection rates of any teams in the BBL|13 season but the Strikers' batting average (33.2) was the best of any team in the campaign while the Thunder (18.6) were ranked last in this category.
- Matt Short scored 29.1 per cent of the Adelaide Strikers' runs when he played in BBL|13, the best rate of any player for a team in the competition (minimum 2 innings); he's scored 60-plus in each of his last three BBL innings against the Sydney Thunder (65, 82, 74no).
- Sydney Thunder's Chris Green (24 per cent from 71 balls faced) and Adelaide Strikers' Harry Nielsen (26 per cent from 46 balls faced) had the best batting dot ball rates of any players in BBL|13 (minimum 20 balls faced).
KFC BBL|14 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1
HUR
|
10 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | -0.12 | 0 | 15 |
|
2
SIX
|
10 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.156 | 0 | 14 |
|
3
THU
|
10 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0.34 | 0 | 12 |
|
4
STA
|
10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.135 | 0 | 10 |
|
5
SCO
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.219 | 0 | 8 |
|
6
REN
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.139 | 0 | 8 |
|
7
HEA
|
10 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1 | -0.831 | 0 | 7 |
|
8
STR
|
10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | -0.122 | 0 | 6 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points
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