The votes are in so find out who the eight head coaches have picked in their best XI for BBL|14
Warner named captain of official BBL|14 Team of the Tournament
David Warner has been named captain of official KFC BBL|14 Team of the Tournament in his first full Big Bash season after leading Sydney Thunder off the bottom and back into the finals.
Warner (346 runs) also starred at the top of the order for the Thunder, finishing second behind Cooper Connolly (351) in the BKT Golden Bat leaderboard, who has also earned selection in the tournament's best XI for the first time.
Veteran fast bowler Jason Behrendorff, who won BKT Golden Arm award with 17 wickets, also makes his maiden appearance in a BBL Team of the Tournament dominated by seven first timers.
Official BBL|14 Team of the Tournament:
1. David Warner* (c) – Sydney Thunder (8 votes)
2. Mitchell Owen* – Hobart Hurricanes (6 votes)
3. Cooper Connolly* – Perth Scorchers (8 votes)
4. Marcus Stoinis – Melbourne Stars (4 votes)
5. Sam Billings* (wk) – Sydney Thunder (3 votes)
6. Glenn Maxwell – Melbourne Stars (5 votes)
7. Tim David – Hobart Hurricanes (6 votes)
8. Ben Dwarshuis* – Sydney Sixers (5 votes)
9. Tom Rogers – Melbourne Renegades (8 votes)
10. Jason Behrendorff* – Perth Scorchers (5 votes)
11. Lloyd Pope* – Adelaide Strikers (5 votes)
12th: Jamie Overton – Adelaide Strikers (3 votes)
*denotes first time selected in BBL Team of the Tournament
He leads an attack featuring four of the top six wicket-takers for the season with Tom Rogers (16), Lloyd Pope (15) and Ben Dwarshuis (14) also earning selection.
Adelaide Strikers' English allrounder Jamie Overton (191 runs and 11 wickets) narrowly missed selection in the XI for the second straight year after being named as 12th man.
Selected by the league's eight head coaches, who each picked their best team from across the entire competition, Brisbane Heat are the only club not represented.
Warner, Connolly and Rogers each earned the maximum number of votes with eight, while Hobart Hurricanes pair Tim David and Mitch Owen received six votes.
Sam Billings takes the gloves after 11 dismissals and 185 runs in the regular season, and alongside hard-hitting opener Owen, left-armer Dwarshuis and leg-spinner Pope round out the seven selected in the Team of the Tournament for the first time.
Glenn Maxwell (BBL|09 and |10) makes his third appearance since the concept was introduced for BBL|09, with Melbourne Stars teammate Marcus Stoinis (BBL|09) his second after being named 12th man a year later.
Rogers and David also earned selection for the second time after being named in BBL|12.
"It is brilliant to see the likes of David Warner and Jason Behrendorff earn selection for the first time, alongside a host of other experienced players. Their performances over many years reflect all players' dedication to the BBL," said league boss Alistair Dobson.
"Similarly, the BBL has been the launch pad for young players like Cooper Connolly and Mitch Owen, and a place for internationals including Sam Billings and Jamie Overton to showcase their talent."
Five of the team's 12 members are still alive in BBL|14 as the Sixers meet the Thunder for the first ever time in BBL finals at the SCG on Friday for a chance to take on the Hurricanes next Monday for the title.
Top performers in BBL|14
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
|
344 |
|
4
Glenn Maxwell
G Maxwell
|
325 |
|
5
Marcus Stoinis
M Stoinis
|
311 |
|
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
Ben Dwarshuis
B Dwarshuis
|
14 |
|
7
Spencer Johnson
S Johnson
|
13 |
|
8
Riley Meredith
R Meredith
|
13 |
Most sixes scored
BBL|14
| Player | Total |
|---|---|
|
1
Glenn Maxwell
G Maxwell
|
27 |
|
2
Mitchell Owen
M Owen
|
25 |
|
3
Cooper Connolly
C Connolly
|
19 |
|
4
Tim David
T David
|
17 |
|
5
Matthew Renshaw
M Renshaw
|
17 |
|
6
Max Bryant
M Bryant
|
14 |
|
7
Josh Brown
J Brown
|
12 |
|
8
Jake Fraser-McGurk
J Fraser-McGurk
|
12 |
KFC BBL|14 finals schedule
Qualifier: Hobart Hurricanes beat Sydney Sixers by 12 runs
Knockout: Sydney Thunder beat Melbourne Stars by 21 runs (DLS Method)
Challenger: Sydney Sixers v Sydney Thunder, SCG (Friday, January 24, 7.15pm AEDT)
Final: Hobart Hurricanes v winner of Challenger, Ninja Stadium (Monday, January 27, 7.15pm AEDT)