Cricket betting tips: Sydney Sixers versus Sydney Thunder preview and best bets
Cricket betting tips: Big Bash – Sydney Sixers v Sydney Thunder
3pts Sydney Sixers to beat Sydney Thunder at 3/4 (General)
0.5pt Chris Green top Sydney Thunder batsman at 100/1 (Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook)
0.5pt Nathan McAndrew top Sydney Thunder batsman at 55/1 (Paddy Power, Betfair Sportsbook)
Australia Test stars Steve Smith and David Warner return for the Sydney Derby on Friday, the latter scheduled to arrive directly onto the SCG playing surface via helicopter as he makes the quick dash from his brother’s wedding.
Warner’s commitment to the cause – the Thunder cause, not his brother’s nuptials – is not in question, but he didn’t pull up any trees in his limited appearances in the Big Bash last year and returns to join a misfiring batting line-up.
Alex Hales finally came good for the Thunder in the latest loss to Perth Scorchers earlier in the week, making light of tough batting conditions to blast 72, but only two others in the side made double figures.
That has been the story of Thunder’s season, and though Warner and recent signing Tom Kohler-Cadmore do beef up the batting on paper, this is a side battling to avoid the wooden spoon following another dreadful campaign.
Middle order money machine
Up against a fine Sixers outfit, if not the vintage one of old, the Thunder could struggle again, and I make no apologies for backing the lower order at huge prices in the top batsman market.
As I’ve said many times this season, don’t ignore that middle to lower order in the Big Bash, and Michael Neser was as big as 50/1 before winning this market for Brisbane Heat on Wednesday.
Back to the Thunder, and CHRIS GREENwas a 40/1 winner for these pages when top scoring for his side against Hobart Hurricanes on New Year’s Day, that 33 following his near miss when making 30 against the Heat earlier in the competition. Green also struck a rapid, unbeaten 17 against the Sixers in the reverse fixture.
Warner’s return clearly muddies the waters in this market, but I’m not advocating big stakes here, and Green’s price being pushed out to 100/1 looks like an overreaction. The facts are that Green has been one of the Thunder’s best batsmen this season, in an admittedly poor field, and he’s already proven he’s more than capable of winning the market.
By the same token, I’ll be sticking with NATHAN MCANDREW at 55/1.
McAndrew hasn’t batted anywhere near as well as Green this season, but he’s always been the type of heavy hitter to click from nowhere and make a quickfire contribution.
Eight First Class fifties and an average of 29.83 shows what McAndrew can do with the bat, and he will remain dangerous if getting the chance to free his arms in the Power Surge.
Sixers too strong for tame Thunder
Clearly that’s not one for big stakes, but the drift on SYDNEY SIXERS to win the match is hard to fathom, particularly when considering that Smith made a couple of centuries in this competition when returning to the fold last summer. I can’t let them go unbacked at 3/4 against a poor Thunder side.
Along with Smith, we’ve seen the likes of James Vince and Daniel Hughes find some form in recent weeks, while Jordan Silk has been excellent all season.
The batting looks solid, then, but so too does the bowling. Sean Abbott will continue to lead a well-drilled attack that features veteran spinner Steve O’Keefe and his exciting understudy, Todd Murphy, who has really impressed in recent weeks.
A season-ending injury to Tom Curran ought to leave a big hole, but Hayden Kerr is fit again and should prove a more than adequate replacement. As ever, the Sixers tick most boxes.
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