BBL|14 is less than a fortnight away with clubs finalising their squads plus availability and injury timelines becoming clearer, enabling us to start predicting Round 1 line-ups.
Hobart Hurricanes
Ins: Rishad Hossain (withdrawn), Shai Hope, Charlie Wakim (Brisbane Heat), Jake Doran, Waqar Salamkheil
Outs: Corey Anderson, Sam Hain
Unsigned from BBL|13: Liam Guthrie, Sam Heazlett
Draft Insights
Draft picks: Shai Hope, Chris Jordan, Rishad Hossain (withdrawn)
Hurricanes head of strategy Ricky Ponting said: “We were looking for a top-order batsman who can bat somewhere from 1 to 4 in our line-up. We thought the chips would fall that way and Shai (Hope) would be waiting there. Hopesy and I coached him at Delhi Capitals last year, he was really good there. His form of late has been outstanding. He’ll fit into the group really well.
“Obviously Chris Jordan did a really good job for us last year. We’re looking for overseas continuity.”
Hurricanes GM of high performance Salliann Beams said about Rishad Hossain: “I saw a few faces when we put him in. he’s been doing very well especially in USA. There’s a few things we have to work through with him from an availability point of view but fingers crossed it works out.”
Squad (18 of 18 signed):
Batsmen: Tim David, Caleb Jewell, Mac Wright, Charlie Wakim, Shai Hope, Jake Doran
Wicketkeepers: Matthew Wade, Ben McDermott
All-rounders: Chris Jordan, Nikhil Chaudhary, Mitch Owen
Bowlers: Nathan Ellis, Riley Meredith, Iain Carlisle, Paddy Dooley, Peter Hatzoglou, Waqar Salamkheil, Billy Stanlake
Round 1 XI
1 M.Wade (wk)
2 B.McDermott
3 C.Jewell
4 C.Wakim
5 T.David
6 N.Chaudhary
7 C.Jordan
8 P.Dooley
9 N.Ellis
10 Waqar Salamkheil
11 R.Meredith
The Hurricanes never quite settled last season, particularly their batting line-up so there’s some guesswork here. Matthew Wade, Ben McDermott and Caleb Jewell have long been the go-tos at the top of the order, but this is a side who’ve struggled for success.
Mac Wright suffered an ACL injury in February, and has been ruled out of BBL|14, impacting their top four. Mitch Owen has had some opportunities for Tasmania as an opener this season, while Jake Doran has produced some run-scoring form domestically too, but we’re not convinced they’ll start.
One thing for sure is it’ll be changes in the middle-order, with Sam Hain and Corey Anderson moved on and Shai Hope brought in specifically to bat in their top 4, so he’s slated for that spot once available after West Indies duty. In the meantime, Charlie Wakim’s form probably has him ahead of Owen, but this spot is very much up for grabs. Keep an eye on Doran among this as he’s a popular early NPP for looping.
Tim David is a brilliant 5 coming off a good T10 League in Abu Dhabi. Nikhil Chaudhary and Chris Jordan were impressive in BBL|13 in their late-order roles, so they’re perfect all-rounders.
Paddy Dooley is likely to team up with Afghan import Waqar Salamkheil as their preferred spinners although Peter Hatzoglou is in the mix. Riley Meredith offers blistering pace and Nathan Ellis is a T20 specialist and quality death-overs option.
Billy Stanlake is fully fit and may squeeze out one of the spinners on occasion based on conditions, while Iain Carlisle is back-up.
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