Cricket Big Bash League Semi-Final 2 February 2023

Sydney Sixers vs Brisbane Heat - Match Preview

Only two matches stay after a long and strenuous BBL12 season and it will be the Sydney Sixers taking on the Brisbane Intensity for a spot against the Perth Scorchers in the last. The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) will play as the Sixers hope to proceed with their no holds barred advantage which at present makes them win 13 of the 17 finished H2H matches.

The Sixers have been the bridesmaid, sitting in second behind the Scorchers since ball one. However, it's not past the point of no return for them to be the lady, with them being only two additional successes from one more BBL title and a fantasy finish to the profession of incredible T20 player Dan Christian who reported his retirement from all cricket a week ago. While we are yet to see the finish of Christian, Steve Smith's time at the Sixers is done with the Australian players now leaving the BBL to connect up with the Australian crew which has taken off for India during the week.

Daniel Hughes is set to come into the eleven to supplant Steve Smith, a decent choice and an in-structure player having struck 400 runs at a normal of 80 in the Australian homegrown 50-over rivalry prior in the season. The run-scoring might be surrendered to the commander Moises Henriques who recorded 58 in the Sixers' latest misfortune to the Scorchers close by 47 from 'Mr Reliable' Jordan Silk. While the outcome didn't turn out well for them there were great exhibitions for the Sixers, including three wickets by all-time contest-driving wicket-taker Sean Abbott. Once more with a dumbfounding normal of only 14 against the Intensity, Abbott will probably be the key with the ball.

Dissimilar to the Sixers, the season for the Intensity hasn't all been going great. As a matter of fact, Intensity got done with a season record of winning less than half of their matches. They figured out how to press in with different outcomes turning out well for them on the last day and were eventually helped by an additional point granted from a cut-short match against the Sixers. Like the Sixers, however, the Intensity will lose their Australian players including Usman Khawaja, who completed the competition within two half-hundreds of years, and Marnus Labuchange who at long last had an effect in the BBL with 73 from 48 in the Intensity 'Knockout' win against the Mavericks.

With the Intensity likewise losing Matt Renshaw and Mitch Swepson, it will be a discount change for the men dressed in blue, with Nathan McSweeney prone to be the enormous consideration subsequent to averaging 59 at a scoring pace of in excess of nine runs for every over in his three BBL12 matches. The uplifting news for Intensity is that their swing bowling a couple of Michael Neser and Xavier Bartlett, who joined for five wickets most as of late against the Mavericks, will go on in the crew. Neser specifically has been great all through BBL12, taking 24 wickets at 17.87. In any case, on a more slow SCG pitch, Matthew Kuhnemann - who himself has gathered 12 wickets in BBL12 at an economy of under eight an over, will be a key figure. Be that as it may, in his three matches against the Sixers previously, he has a sum of only two wickets.

Key matchup: With Intensity losing so large numbers of their hitters it will depend on the substitute chief Jimmy Peirson to stand up in the wake of striking 324 runs with this Huge Slam. He should get along nicely however to move beyond Steve O'Keefe who has 38 wickets at a normal of a little more than 20 at the SCG, while likewise taking Peirson's wicket two times from 17 balls for 13 runs yielded.

Facts in Match: Sydney Sixers - Brisbane Heat

• Sixers have won 15 of their last 16 finished SCG games.
• Four of the five BBL12 games at the SCG were won by batting first.
• Sean Abbott returned the Sixers' best figures in five of their last seven games.
• Michael Neser to Josh Philippe in T20s: 4/51 at 10.20rpo.
• Sean Abbott to Jimmy Peirson in T20s: 3/46 at 8.90rpo.
• Josh Philippe is averaging only 17 with the bat in BBL12 in the wake of averaging around 30 in each season since BBL08.
• Josh Brown has reached the midpoint of 1.42 sixes per innings since coming into the Brisbane Intensity side.
• While playing at home the Sixers have proceeded to win 72% of matches while winning the throw.