Sixers 'hurt' by finals exit but strength remains: BBL|14 review

Sydney Sixers are set to review the "composition" of their playing roster after a seventh consecutive finals appearance was soured by another disappointing exit in the BBL's knockout phase.

For the second time in three seasons, the Sixers crashed out of the BBL finals in straight sets, losing both the Qualifier and Challenger, with the latter bound to sting the most after succumbing to crosstown rivals Sydney Thunder at the SCG.

They've also fallen short in their past two grand final appearances (BBL|11 and |13) after winning consecutive Big Bash titles in BBL|09 and |10.

Moises Henriques' side surged to the top of standings with four straight wins to kickstart their KFC BBL|14 campaign but their momentum was halted by consecutive losses to eventual champions Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars either side of washout with Brisbane Heat.

That's when overseas stars Akeal Hosein and James Vince left for the United Arab Emirates' T20 franchise league, and while Steve Smith returned from Test duties to help the Sixers finish the home-and-away season with two wins, he was also absent for the finals campaign alongside Sean Abbott and Todd Murphy.

It meant both Ben Manenti and Mitch Perry played their first games of the season in the Qualifier final loss to the Hurricanes, while 22-year-old English leg-spinner Jafer Chohan debuted for the Sixers in their second last game of the regular season.

While there were promising signs with the development of young guns Joel Davies and Lachy Shaw, Sixers general manager Rachael Haynes said it "hurt" losing key players at the business end of the season.

"We need to look at … our international signing and potentially making sure they're available for the full season," Haynes said.

"Some players had existing deals in those competitions, so it's hard, you can't really sign a multi-year agreement knowing that someone's got an existing deal.

"They're all things that we'll look at this year and what's in the best interests of the club to give us the balance that we're after and make sure we've got continuity across the season.

"We had a couple of injuries as well, which didn't help. Losing Daniel Hughes for the whole season when previously he's played a really strong role for us."

Despite the circumstances of their finals elimination, the Sixers' core remains strong, as it has for many years, and hopes will be high of qualifying for the finals for an eighth straight season in BBL|15.

"The strength of the Sydney Sixers has been our domestic list and just how well our players have delivered in the big moments over a number of years," Haynes said.

"To make seven consecutive finals just speaks to how strong the team has been and how consistently they perform.

"It's not about throwing everything out and starting again.

"It's just about tuning up a couple of different areas and looking to continue to deliver those performances that we've done over the years."

Season snapshot

BBL|14 result: Third (6 wins, 4 losses, 2 no result), lost Challenger to Thunder by four wickets

 

Most runs: Moises Henriques (236 at 29.50)

 

Best strike rate (min. 50 runs): Steve Smith (182.10)

 

Most wickets: Ben Dwarshuis (14 at 25.50)

 

Best economy (min. 10 overs): Jafer Chohan (6.66)

 

Contracted for BBL|15: Sean Abbott (contracted until BBL|15), Joel Davies (BBL|15), Ben Dwarshuis (BBL|15), Jack Edwards (BBL|16), Moises Henriques (BBL|15), Todd Murphy (BBL|15), Mitch Perry (BBL|15), Josh Philippe (BBL|15), Jordan Silk (BBL|15), Steve Smith (BBL|16)

 

Uncontracted: Jackson Bird, Jafer Chohan, Josh Hazlewood, Lachlan Hearne, Akeal Hosein, Daniel Hughes, Hanno Jacobs, Hayden Kerr, Lachlan Shaw, Ben Manenti, Kurtis Patterson, Mitchell Starc, James Vince

International impact

After several near misses across a decorated seven seasons with the Sixers, James Vince finally raised his bat for a Big Bash century in BBL|14. Twice unbeaten in the 90s – as well as scoring 95 in the BBL|10 Final to lead the Sixers to the title – the English stalwart breached the three-figure milestone on Boxing Day with a sublime 101 not out as the Sixers overhauled the Stars' 194 with almost two overs to spare. It makes him just the second men's player to hit a Big Bash century for the Sixers after Steve Smith, who added a third later in BBL|14 with an unbeaten 121 against Perth Scorchers.

Vince's six games were his fewest in a BBL season since joining the Sixers in BBL|08, but he was still one of their most impactful players before jetting off to captain Gulf Giants in the ILT20 tournament. The 33-year-old also hit a half-century against the Stars in the return clash at the MCG, with his 228 runs coming at an average of almost 46 per innings – the Sixers' next highest for the season after Smith's 173 from his two knocks.

The Sixers swooped on crafty West Indies spinner Akeal Hosein as their pre-draft signing following the left-armer's two stints at the Renegades. He too was only available for the first half of the season due to ILT20 commitments with MI Emirates, but his four wickets at an economy of 7.89 were instrumental in the side's early season wins.

Meanwhile, rising English leg-spinner Jafer Chohan had to bide his time behind Hosein and Todd Murphy but seized his opportunity during the Sixers' ultimately unsuccessful finals campaign. The 22-year-old was relatively unknown when plucked by head coach Greg Shipperd with the final pick of the draft but was the club's best bowler in the Qualifier loss to the Hurricanes with 2-28, including the prized scalp of Mitch Owen. He also picked up 1-22 from four overs in the Challenger and is definitely on the club's radar to return next season.

Season recap with general manager Rachael Haynes

Regular season success

"It was really pleasing to be part of the finals for the seventh consecutive season. Our home-and-away performances were really strong and that was complemented by some really good individual performances – James Vince scoring a hundred, Steve Smith coming back after the Indian Test series and doing the same and Ben Dwarshuis had a really strong season as well with the ball.

"That was really pleasing, it was just obviously a bit disappointing our run in the finals campaign, losing a few players who had played a really valuable role for us at a crucial time for the season hurt a little bit."

Young guns emerge

"The bowling group really stood up. We we're really excited for Sean (Abbott) to be around the Test group and have that opportunity, but it was just a little bit unfortunate for us losing such a pivotal bowler in our line-up. But it was great to see Hayden Kerr come back into the squad and play a valuable role after he had a couple of injuries last season.

"We saw Joel Davies get an opportunity in the Powerplay at the start of the tournament and he showed what he's capable of. Lachy Shaw as well coming in as an LRP (local replacement player), he put in some really strong performances, not just in the field, but also showed some promising signs with the bat too. All in all, there's some good signs for us, but we'll definitely look at that composition to make sure that at the end of the season, if we qualify for finals, we're able to keep a strong squad."

New-look spin attack

"Todd Murphy was really solid again, he's a class bowler and plays his role really nicely, maybe even at times could get some more overs to be honest. Akeal Hosein was brilliant, being one of the best spinners in the world, he's got the ability to bowl in lots of different phases of the game, and Joel Davies when Akeal wasn't there initially, he sort of filled that role and showed what he's capable of. Steve O'Keefe was a really big loss to our group but we've shown there's really good options there to fill that void.

"I thought Jafer Chohan was excellent to come in at that (late) stage of the tournament and bowl the way he did. He didn't just take wickets, but his economy rate was really strong too for a leg-spinner. The recruitment of him at the draft, there were a couple of question marks when we did that at the time, but he showed why we picked him up."

Breakout player

"It was really pleasing to see someone like Lachy Shaw come in, who wasn't on our list initially. He got a really decent opportunity just given the injuries around our squad and then obviously with Steve Smith being in the Test side. There were some really promising signs shown by him and it's exciting for his future in the competition."

Looking ahead to BBL|15

Finals stability

"It's something we need to look at and whether that's with our international signing and potentially making sure they're available for the full season or looking at our domestic players … to give us the balance that we're after and make sure we've got continuity across the season. At the top of the order, throw in a couple of injuries – losing Daniel Hughes for the whole season when previously he's played a really strong role for us – and all of a sudden it starts to get a little bit challenging in tournament play."

Priority re-signings

"We've got a few players who we weren't able to sign just due to the contracting rules really, so Hayden Kerr, Daniel Hughes – who unfortunately missed this season with injury – and Lachy Shaw as well. All these players who are around our group who we couldn't contract just due to the rules, they're certainly players that we'll be looking at to try and secure. We don't have a multi-year international signed to our list (for BBL|15) so that's something else we'll be looking at."

Next generation of leaders

"We feel really fortunate to have players like Moises (Henriques) and Jordan (Silk), and throw Jack Edwards into the mix now too, he's (been a leader) around the NSW program. You can throw a blanket over most of the senior players in that line-up and they've done a really good job in terms of their leadership and also their cricket smarts.

"While you've got really good leaders in your squad, it's important to use them as a bit of a developing opportunity for younger guys coming through. Spending time around those players and getting that match experience is going to help set us up for future success and pulling through future leaders as well."

BBL|14 season reviews