BBL 2021-22: Team Previews: Sydney Sixers
Sydney Sixers – Preview
The team which has created new benchmarks in every season of the Big Bash League is Sydney Sixers. They will defend their BBL10 title this year. The Sixers is the most successful team in the league and they will be looking forward to winning their third consistent title win after winning BBL9 and BBL 10. Sydney Sixers are also the winner of the first season of the Big Bash League. Here’s the latest cricket score bbl.
Sydney Sixers – 2020-21 Performance
They were the top-performing team last year, and they proved by winning the title. The Sixers had a massive competition with Perth Scorchers and, by winning their third BBL trophy; they are now ahead of the Scorchers. They turned out to be group winners, having won nine of their 14 games.
Sixers also gained nine bonus points, which is the most by any side, which helped them and gave them two title shots at the final. They defeated Perth Scorchers twice and all thanks to James Vince’s innings.
Sydney Sixers – Changes from Last Season
The Sixers have enjoyed a good phase during the off-season as well. Coach Greg Shipperd is back again with his new contract. Captain Moises Henriques and chief lieutenants Ben Dwarshuis, Steve O’Keefe, and most recently, Jackson Bird have signed new agreements with the team as well. James Vince, their last year’s hero, is back again in the team and the Sixers will have high expectations from him. Tom Curran, after missing his last season, will be available for the team. A big change that has recently occurred in the team is Chris Jordan. After Carlos Brathwaite’s injury, the Sixers have signed Jordan, who is in brilliant form which was witnessed in ICC T20 World Cup.
Batting
Sydney Sixers have depth in their batting. They have a good lineup of batsmen who can change the course of the game at any moment. At the beginning of the last season, they were struggling with a good opening partnership. In this season, the management has not done big changes and despite that; they have trusted five of the reigning champions.
Josh Philippe and James Vince will be looking forward to having good partnerships again. Their combined strike rate in the last season was 146.35 and they scored 1,045 runs including seven fifties between them. With Moises Henriques in the list of the top order, the Sixers are sorted with the opening partnerships.
Daniel Hughes and Dan Christian control the middle order. Daniel Hughes, who very much knows his role in this line-up, is a reliable figure in the middle order. Dan Christian is one of the dependable batsmen who can handle the pressure in the death overs. In the last season, he scored 272 runs at a strike rate of 182.55. Check the IPL betting tips and guide here.
Bowling
Sydney Sixers has a good amount of bowling options in the team. Starting with pacers, Jackson Bird, Sean Abbott, and left-armer Ben Dwarshuis will be the go-to bowlers for the team. They have also signed England’s star bowler Chris Jordan, but his contract is just for 6 matches. It means the Sixers will give regular chances to their top 3 bowlers.
Steve O’Keefe will be handling the spin attack for the team. He was expected to get a call from the national team, but since that has not happened, he will be focused on the franchise. Nathan Lyon will be a reserve spinner since he has not played any T20 since February 2020.
Problem Areas
When it comes to the batting lineup Sydney Sixers, it is close to perfect. The only thing which goes away unnoticeable is the amount of right-handed batsman they have in the team. They don’t have many variations as right-handers dominate the batting line.
In the bowling department, the Sixers will miss Carlos Brathwaite. His performance in last season’s win was commendable. Nathan Lyon will be in the bubble and Steve O’Keefe is not performing up to the mark.
Sydney Sixers – Squad
Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird, Chris Jordan, Dan Christian, Tom Curran, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Mickey Edwards, Moises Henriques (c), Daniel Hughes, Hayden Kerr, Nathan Lyon, Ben Manenti, Josh Philippe, Lloyd Pope, Jordan Silk, James Vince, Steve O’Keefe
Possible Playing XI: Josh Philippe, James Vince, Daniel Hughes, Moises Henriques, Jordan Silk, Dan Christian, Chris Jordan, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Steve O’Keefe, Jackson Bird
Sydney Sixers Coach: Greg Shipperd
Top Batsman: James Vince
Top Bowler: Jackson Bird