A look at who could prove the difference for each club as five teams jostle for the remaining BBL|14 finals spot
Impact players to look out for as finals race goes down the wire
The last weekend of the regular season has arrived, and every team is still in contention to lift the BBL trophy on January 27.
With just three matches to go until KFC BBL|14 finals, it's all on the line in this weekend. Hobart Hurricanes, Sydney Sixers and Sydney Thunder are locked into spots 1, 2 and 3 following Friday night's washout at the SCG.
Fourth place in the BBL|14 standings is well and truly up for grabs, with Melbourne Stars, Brisbane Heat, Adelaide Strikers, Perth Scorchers and Melbourne Renegades all still in the running.
As we prepare for this weekend's crucial fixtures, here's one player from every club that will be pivotal in giving their side a fighting chance of moving up the BBL|14 standings.
Matt Short (Adelaide Strikers)
Coming into BBL|14 as the Player of the Tournament in the two previous editions of competition, Matt Short has had a topsy-turvy time of it this season. Battling a toe injury suffered against the Hurricanes, Adelaide's captain has played six games so far this season, reaching a score of fifty or more on just two occasions (52 v Hurricanes and 109 v Heat). Despite a tough run where his missed three straight games, Short's strike rate of 167.52 is his highest strike rate in a single BBL season. With Chris Lynn unavailable due to a hamstring injury, there's no doubt a big score from Short could be vital in their chances of a victory against the Scorchers, and therefore a potential finals berth in BBL|14.
Max Bryant (Brisbane Heat)
In his seventh season with the Heat, Max Bryant has made some valuable contributions to keep his spot in the reigning champions starting XI. With two scores in the 70s (77 v Stars and 72 v Thunder), Bryant has provided the Heat with some much-needed fire power in the middle order. The Heat are set to lose a number of Australian Test squad members for their final fixture against the Renegades on Saturday, including batters Usman Khawaja and Marcus Labuschagne. Having now played 70 BBL matches, 25-year-old Bryant finds himself as one of the more experienced Heat members heading into the latter stages of this tournament. With a strike rate of 162.50 and average of 41.16 this season, another significant contribution from Bryant would go a long way to giving the Heat a sneaky chance of defending their title in BBL|14.
Mitch Owen (Hobart Hurricanes)
As arguably the 'surprise packet' of the tournament, Mitch Owen has impressed the competition with his big hitting throughout BBL|14. After making headlines with his first BBL century at Ninja Stadium (101 v Scorchers), Owen has not made it past 50 since that day in Hobart. Despite this, Owen has made significant contributions for the Hurricanes during their batting Powerplays. In fact, Owen has the most runs scored in the Powerplay by any batter this season (170). Striking at 182 throughout the tournament, Owen has also launched 19 sixes (second most in the tournament behind Glenn Maxwell) and has hit the most boundaries this season (42). Recently, Owen has also been used by Nathan Ellis as an extra bowling option. He's bowled five overs for the Hurricanes at an economy of 6.60, showing he's not just a power-hitter at the top of the order. As the club attempt to win their first BBL title, Owen could be the man to help get them to the promised land.
Josh Brown (Melbourne Renegades)
While Tom Rogers leads the BKT Golden Arm with the most wickets in BBL|14, it may be the Renegades big-hitting opener Josh Brown who could have the most impact against his former side this Saturday at Marvel Stadium. After making the move from the Heat to the Renegades, Brown hasn't reached the highs he did during his time with Brisbane where he scored 140 and 53 in their finals victories last season. With only one half-century (66 v Strikers), Brown has failed to reach double digits in his last three knocks. While he's scored 151 runs at an average of 18.66 this season, Brown is a proven performer in crunch matches and could be the one for the Renegades to stand up this weekend and give them a shot at claiming an unlikely finals berth.
Glenn Maxwell (Melbourne Stars)
In many ways, BBL|14 has been all about the resurgence of one-man – Glenn Maxwell. Reflecting the form of his side in their early fixtures, Maxwell's stunning turnaround with the bat in recent matches has given his side the opportunity to play finals in BBL|14 despite losing their first five matches. Player of the Match performances in their most recent MCG fixture (58 v Sixers) and last Sunday's Melbourne derby (90 v Renegades) has turned the Stars' season on its head. It's been Maxwell's hitting at the end of his team's batting innings which has been simply superb. In the final five overs of their last three batting innings, Maxwell has been able to score 78 runs just by himself. It's this hitting in the death overs which has given the Stars a lifeline in BBL|14. If Sunday's fixture at the MCG goes down to the wire, and Maxwell is at the crease, the Stars will be in safe hands.
Cooper Connolly (Perth Scorchers)
Perth Scorchers young gun Cooper Connolly had spent most of the season leading the BKT Golden Bat, and he could still claim the award with a big score in his final match of BBL|14 this Saturday against the Strikers. Having impressed throughout the competition, Connolly was rewarded with a call-up for Australia's Test tour of Sri Lanka. Despite Saturday's fixture being his final match of the season, Connolly will be eager to give his side a chance of claiming yet another Big Bash title. Moving up to No.3 in the Scorchers batting order this season, Connolly has made 246 runs at an average of 44.57. While he's only made it past 50 twice (64 v Stars and 66 v Renegades), he's made scores of 30-plus on six occasions, building partnerships with fellow Scorchers batters throughout the summer. If the Scorchers are to have any chance of taking fourth position on the BBL standings, they’ll need a big performance from one of their stars so why not their best performer this season.
Josh Philippe (Sydney Sixers)
With Steve Smith gone due to Australia's departure for their Test tour of Sri Lanka, the Sixers will be keen for their remaining opener Josh Philippe to step up at the business end of the season. James Vince has also played his last game in BBL|14 and Philippe's opening partner in the finals series remains uncertain. Smith's sublime knocks of 52 and 121 not out in their past two completed games has done the heavy lifting, but with 179 runs striking at 134.58 with a top score of 66no, Philippe has also hit his straps in BBL|14. However, with four single figure scores in his last four innings, the Sixers will be looking for a strong start to go deep into finals.
David Warner (Sydney Thunder)
Taking over the Thunder captaincy has been a blessing for the former Australian opener. David Warner leads the BKT Golden Bat with 346 runs at an average of 57.66 and a strike rate of 142.38. From finishing last in BBL|13 to securing their spot in the BBL|14 finals, Warner's impact can't be overstated. The Thunder skipper has the equal most fifties this season (3 – 88no v Hurricanes, 50 v Heat and 86no v Renegades) and a couple more in the finals series would go a long way to helping lift the western Sydney club from the bottom to the top in the space of 12 months.
KFC BBL|14 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
HUR
|
9 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.135 | 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
SCO
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.219 | 0 | 8 |
|
5
REN
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.139 | 0 | 8 |
|
6
STA
|
9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -0.073 | 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