Big Bash League 2019 Match 42, Sydney Thunder vs Sydney Sixers: Preview, likely XIs, predictions

January 18 will feature the Sydney Derby where the sixth-ranked team will take on the second-placed team of the tournament.

Sydney Thunder with just nine points from the league so far are not the favourites for this fixture. They began their campaign well with two consecutive wins but then in recent times went on to register three back to back defeats. Their last match against Melbourne Renegades saw them getting bundled up for only 122/7 while chasing 173. The Renegades won the match by 12 runs (D/L method). The bowlers could not provide the breakthroughs when needed and then the batsmen failed to deliver. Only three batters from the entire Thunder line-up could reach double digits.

Sydney Sixers are in a much better position relatively with 13 points from 10 games. After being defeated by Hobart Hurricanes and Brisbane Heat at the initial stage of the league they came back strongly to claim five wins on the trot. Then the Sixers failed to chase down a mammoth target of 220 runs posted by Melbourne Stars. The batsmen did try their best and managed to reach 175/7 in 20 overs. One or two big scores from the top order could have changed the result in favour of the Sixers. Sydney Sixers faced Hobart Hurricanes in their latest and the rain abandoned match saw the former team losing two quick wickets.

In the current situation, Sydney Sixers do not have the undefeated tag anymore. Moreover, these two teams already had a face-off that ended in the one-over eliminator. So, the audience can definitely expect a high voltage match with the Sixers having a slight edge only because of their rankings.  

Key players

Daniel Sams (Sydney Thunder)– With 17 wickets at an average of 14.76 Daniel Sams has been leading the bowling charts for quite a long time. His consistency is the asset for Sydney Thunder and even in the previous contest with the Sixers Sams went on to pick up the highest scorer of the opponent.

Josh Phillipe (Sydney Sixers)– The highest run-getter for Sydney Sixers so far in the tournament is Josh Philippe. He 277 runs in 10 matches and is a dependable bat at the top. He has been not so good in the last few outings but he can still play the role of the gamechanger for the Sixers.

Likely XIs

Sydney Thunder- Usman Khawaja, Alex Hales, Callum Ferguson (c), Matthew Gilkes, Chris Morris, Daniel Sams, Alex Ross, Arjun Nair, Nathan McAndrew, Jonathan Cook, Chris Tremain

Sydney Sixers- Josh Phillipe (wk), Daniel Hughes, James Vince, Moises Henriques (c), Jordan Silk, Tom Curran, Justin Avendano, Ben Dwarshuis, Jackson Bird, Steve O’Keefe, Lloyd Pope

Prediction

Sydney Sixers to win.