That round was certainly… something. None of the big guns really fired outside of Ben Dwarshuis. Spencer Johnson went gangbusters in game 1 and the 2 opening batsmen, Ben Duckett and Josh Philippe went large, both scoring double tons in round 3.
It’s all in the past however, as we look towards the Strikers and the Renegades for Round 4 of SuperCoach BBL:
Adelaide Strikers Targets
A lot of people traded out Matt Short to fund our expensive trade-ins, who eventually busted and leaked a lot of cash, without scoring many points at all which as a result, means that many will have to scramble to bring in Short. It’s absolutely worth it though, as he seems to have found his form once again with the bat, and with his increased bowling role, that 100ppg average that he had last year seems attainable for the remainder of the year.
Chris Lynn has dropped significantly in value from the start of the year, and it’s rare that a batter with the prestige that Lynn has, is kept down for too long. He has a 3-game average of 84 vs the Renegades and 59 against the Scorchers, meaning 2 positive matchups are here for Lynn.
Finally, as a cheaper POD move, I’m not completely against Liam Scott. Bowled 4 overs including death last game and looks a fairly sharp cricketer. His role is still very handy and with the potential to drop Bazley, Scott could find himself bowling 2-4 overs and batting at 7 which at just $52k, is not a bad bargain buy.
If you don’t own Jamie Overton either, make sure you’ve got him. Lloyd Pope could be a big POD too, having found form with 7 wickets in 4 games and having destroyed the Scorchers – game 1 opposition – in the finals last season.
Renegades Trade Targets
Will Sutherland has the 2nd highest average in all of SuperCoach (min 3 games) and is having an outstanding season with bat, ball and as captain of the Renegades. His role and significance to this side cannot be understated, which makes him a priority target for those who had to sell.
This is controversial, but I’ve got Tim Seifert down as a luxury trade in. Whilst he comfortably sports the highest average of WKPs, he does play one game at Marvel, where batters have struggled, and another game at Showground, which is far from batter-friendly. At $184k, I feel that is a lot of money to invest in a WKP with two negative situations when it comes to batting pitches.
Fergus O’Neill has been in great wicket-taking form, and at $140k, is an important target when you consider that the wickets he’s bowling on will benefit him, especially after scoring 80 at Marvel against the Scorchers back in Round 2.
Finally, at just $100k with DPP, it’d be remiss of me not to mention Jacob Bethell, the man hailed by Michael Vaughan as one of England’s greatest talents, but he’s yet to do it in the BBL. Will this be the round? Well you have to pay $100k to find out, and his upside is definitely there, plus he might get some sneaky overs on these spin-friendly wickets, which could add to his already-high ceiling as a top 4 bat in an aggressive lineup.
Kane Richardson is another cheapie worth a look, given his surge and death overs role where wickets fall. Maybe monitor if Gades bowl first in game 1.
Let’s wrap this up with a quick guide to some of the Captain and Vice Captain options for Round 4 that have the ceiling to make or break your round:
VC options
- Will Sutherland (plays the first game of the round vs the Thunder)
- Fergus O’Neill (plays the first game of the round vs the Thunder)
C options
- Matt Short (plays the second game of the round vs the Scorchers)
- Jamie Overton (plays the second game of the round vs the Scorchers)
Thank you for reading another Devil’s Advocate, Happy New Year to everyone reading, thanks again for getting around us so far this BBL, and all the best for Round 4!
Cheers, Nathan (SuperCoach Guns)
