Recommended: Wristspinners, and a strong bowling line-up

January 2: Melbourne Renegades v Sydney Sixers in Melbourne

Our XI: Josh Philippe, Aaron Finch, Daniel Hughes, Shaun Marsh, Moises Henriques, Beau Webster, Tom Curran, Kane Richardson, Lloyd Pope, Cameron Boyce, Jackson Bird

NOTE: We might not always be able to tip you off about late injury (or other relevant updates)

Captain: Aaron Finch

The Renegades, the defending champions, are winless so far this season, but captain Finch has been among their bright lights. For your XI’s captaincy, it’s a toss-up between Finch and Shaun Marsh, but the former gets our nod thanks to his long-standing consistency at the Docklands Stadium, where he is the highest run-getter over the past four seasons. Finch is also coming off successive fifties.

Vice-captain: Tom Curran

Curran has barely had an off-day this season, and in addition to being the tournament’s fourth-highest wicket-taker, he has been contributing with some quick lower-order runs too. The last time he played at this ground, he produced a match-winning all-round performance of 3 for 18 and a 15-ball 23. He could be an option for the captaincy too.

Hot picks

Kane Richardson

Another stellar individual performer for the Renegades, Richardson is at No. 3 on the wicket charts, and has gone at just 6.19 runs per over. Your banker with the ball.

Shaun Marsh

Marsh has got off to a good start in his first season with Renegades, racking up 150 runs from four innings at a strike rate of 127.11. Along with Finch, he has carried their batting so far, and as someone who plays spin and pace equally well, is a dependable batting option to have in your XI.

Moises Henriques

Henriques has been a bit up and down, but with 114 runs from five innings, he is Sixers’ highest run-getter so far and their most consistent option with the bat. He’s not got to a fifty yet, and is due a big score.

Value picks

Cameron Boyce: The wristspinner has come good on home turf in recent times, with eight wickets from the Renegades’ last six home games at an economy rate of 6.77. Still comes cheap in the fantasy market, and could be among the wickets against the Sixers’ right-hand-heavy batting order.

Beau Webster: Webster has been striking big for the Renegades so far, with 131 runs at a rate of 156. He has only been dismissed once from four digs, and could be the one to turn your day around with some quick runs.

Points to note

  • Wristspinners have been effective at Docklands Stadium, with 26 wickets at an economy of 6.17 since BBL 2016-17. Worth picking both sides’ premier leggies – Boyce and the Sixers’ Lloyd Pope.

  • While it hasn’t exactly been a high-scoring ground – the average first-innings score over the past five games is 148 – these two sides made 180-plus the last time they faced off here, in the BBL 08 semi-final. Neither line-up has been too good with the bat so far, so go with a strong bowling attack for potential differential points.

Source: ESPN Crickinfo

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