The Big Bash League heads to a Melbourne hub this week to try and close out the BBL11 season and minimise any further disruptions by Covid. Whether they are successful or not remains to be seen. Victoria is struggling through a huge Omicron wave, but having all teams together in one region, for the most part, will minimise travel for the teams and assist with shared use of a potential pool of fill-in players. It feels a little bit village, but everyone is trying their best to get through the next couple of weeks.

 

It’s an MCG double header on Monday, with the Hobart Hurricanes taking on the Sydney Thunder in the first match of the day at a start time of 2:10pm AEDT.

 

Draftstars have once again provided another great fantasy BBL contest with $15,000 up for grabs in their main contest, with supporting high rollers, minis and micros on offer.

 

Draftstars

 

Hurricanes squad: Bell, Brook, David, Handscomb (c), Jewell, Lamichhane, McDermott, Meredith, Owen, Parker, Rogers, Sanders, Short, Thompson, Wright

 

Thunder squad: Cook, Cutting, Davies, Doggett, Gilkes, Hales, Hasnain, Holt, McAndrew, Nair, Ross, Sams, Sandhu, J.Sangha (c), T.Sangha, Tremain, Whiteman

 

The Hurricanes bounced back last match against an under-strength Brisbane Heat outfit. It wasn’t overly convincing, but they got the job done. Now they face a tougher challenge against the red-hot Thunder.

 

The Hurricanes have named a 15-man squad that includes imports Harry Brook and Jordan Thompson who have both been released from isolation. Matthew Wade is still missing for personal reasons.

 

Ben McDermott was once again the star, narrowly missing out on his third century of the BBL11 season. If your Draftstars team didn’t have Ben McDermott, then it was going to be pretty hard to cash, so again, he becomes a vital piece of the puzzle in this one. Caleb Jewell and Peter Handscomb are again good value if they bat in the top order, although it will be a little tougher against this opposition.


Keep an eye on Mitch Owen who was very good for the Hurricanes last match with 2-25 from 4 overs, including the vital last over of the innings. He’s also a handy bat so might be worth consideration. Sandeep Lamichhane is also putting together a nice season with some consistent scoring, with 8 wickets in his last four matches.

 

However, the Canes will have to be at their absolute best to challenge the Sydney Thunder who are now eyeing off top spot on the BBL11 ladder. Despite some Covid worries, the Thunder have maintained their winning form. The promotion of Daniel Sams up to number 4 in the order worked wonders last match as he blasted a magnificent 98* from just 44 balls. Sams is unstoppable when he gets going and it was one of the great innings of the season. Throw in some overs with the ball and he’s always in play in BBL fantasy.

 

Alex Hales also looked to be returning to his form of old last match so he’s worth consideration, while Ollie Davies is capable of anything and is champing at the bit for a crack at them!

 

With the ball, Tanveer Sangha has had another great season and seems destined for higher honours, while Mohammad Hasnain has been a valuable late-season inclusion to inject some genuine pace. Gurinder Sandhu has also been very good with two big fantasy scores in the last two weeks and is much underrated with the new ball, but he has copped a price hike for this contest. Skipper Chris Green remains on the sidelines for Covid reasons, with Jason Sangha set to lead the side once again.

 

Looking for Draftstars scores from previous editions from the BBL? Our Free Players Logs + Ground Fantasy breakdowns are now available in our BBL11 Data Tools

Love It - Daniel Sams ($20,200)

 

How can you not love Daniel Sams? He’s a wicket taking machine and if he’s batting at number four in the order, then his fantasy potential is huge. Has only failed once this season, with every other match producing wickets, runs or both! Always in the game and I’m happy to load him while he’s in cracking form and batting up the order.

 

Love It - Mitch Owen ($10,500)

 

To balance the premiums, I like Mitch Owen as my budget pick. He’s a very strong grade cricketer who is looking to take the next step, and last match there were good signs. He should get plenty of opportunity again in this depleted Hurricanes bowling attack, and if he’s bowling at the death again, then that should only help his wicket-taking chances. He’s also a good striker of the ball if required.

 

Don’t Love It - D’Arcy Short ($20,100)

 

With Sams and McDermott attracting a premium price, it’s hard to make a case for D’Arcy Short, other than low ownership. Has been out of form all season, and didn’t bowl particularly well last match either with his one over going for 11 runs. I’d just much rather have Sams at the same price in this one.

 

Don’t Love It - Ben Cutting ($13,900)

 

Ben Cutting became fantasy relevant for a short while when he was thrust up into the opening position, but that experiment has now come to an end. He’s back down to number six, or maybe even seven, where it’s hard for him to make an impact. He’s bowling the odd over but there’s other players I prefer around this price range instead.

 

Who Knows - Ollie Davies ($11,600)


The big loser in the Sams promotion up the order was Ollie Davies. Surely you’d think there was opportunity to give him the number four spot and back in their young superstar but instead he was left at number five. You could interpret that as a lack of faith in Davies, despite the great innings by Sams. Davies’ price is attractive, and he always scores at a fast clip, but we’re waiting to see if he has that really big innings in him or not.

 

Suggested Draftstars Lineup

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