The Scorchers have won both of their previous games against the Heat this season, by seven and eight wickets. Before the final let us take a look at some of the key battles.
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They’ve won seven of their last eight games to get to this point, including three sudden-death finals, so might the Brisbane Heat pull off the biggest upset of all to win the KFC BBL|12 titles? A dominating Perth Scorchers team and 55,000 home supporters stand in their way of a record fifth Big Bash championship and their first title win at home since BBL|06. Jimmy Peirson’s side enters the match as enormous underdogs, just like they were when they defeated the Sixers on Thursday, despite the absence of Test stalwarts Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Matthew Renshaw, and Mitchell Swepson, who have all left for India. The Scorchers have won both of their previous games against the Heat this season, by seven and eight wickets. Before the final let us take a look at some of the key battles.
Josh Inglis (76) and Aaron Hardie (72) complete the top three run-scorers in the Power Surge, with strike rates of 237.5 and 257.1, respectively, the third and fourth highest in the BBL12 (minimum 20 balls). The pair are the club’s top two run-scorers in BBL12, and they have put up two of the Scorchers’ three biggest partnerships of the season, including an unbroken 132 for the third wicket the previous time the two sides met. Aside from his ability with the new ball – he has the third most wickets (10) in the opening six overs of an inning, trailing only Behrendorff and Sean Abbott – seasoned Heat seamer Michael Neser has been outstanding in the Power Surge. He has the most wickets in the two-over block.
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Josh Brown is only 13 games into his T20 career, but he is a critical gauge for the Brisbane Heat. He was key in getting them off to a fast start on a difficult batting surface during the Challenger triumph over the Sixers, with his 11 sixes in the four-over Powerplay the most of any batter in BBL|12. However, he is susceptible to swinging balls and has been out to left-arm pace three times this tournament, including Jason Behrendorff during the Heat’s most recent match against the Scorchers. With 11 wickets in the first six overs of innings and a great economy rate of six, Behrendorff has been the equal-most prolific with the new ball this season. He’s also bowled the most deliveries (186) of any bowler in the first six overs of the Powerplay, with a dot ball percentage of 57, indicating his ability with the new ball. Payne, the Scorchers’ second left-arm swing bowler, has also taken three wickets with an economy rate of six in five matches. In the Powerplay, Payne has a dot ball percentage of 57.4.
The Heat’s batting fortunes will be heavily reliant on stand-in skipper Jimmy Peirson, who has scored the most runs in the competition (331), with the rest of their top four – Matthew Renshaw (283), Colin Munro (278), and Usman Khawaja (249) – all missing today’s final. The Power Surge has been the most effective spell for the Heat wicketkeeper-batter this tournament, with his 101 (strike rate 206) the highest runs of any batter in BBL|12. On the other hand, AJ Tye is the Power Surge’s second top wicket-taker this season, with six wickets at an economy rate of 8.25.
