What a shocking round that was. The popular Thunder players not named Warner or Ferguson flopped, and Dan Christian roared back to life in the BBL. We had a game washed out and Will Sutherland and Tom Rogers dominate in their game.
Round 7 is a massive round, as the Test stars return, and international replacements arrive which will drastically change lineups once again!
Let’s have a look at the Test players likely roles, relevance and then we’ll look at a couple of great targets outside of them for round 7.
Returning Test Player targets
Starting out with the priciest one, Steve Smith has a career average in SuperCoach of 83, making him around $30k undervalued. Now, the caveat to that is, he’s a few years older now, and it’s well possible that an 83 average is behind him at his stage of his career, but it’s a significant step below what he’s been facing all summer from Bumrah.
Smith also plays 2 of his last 3 game at the SCG, where he averages 77.6, making him a great option for our sides despite the price. However, the forecast for Saturday’s game against the Perth Scorchers at the SCG is a worry, with plenty of rain predicted.
On the polar opposite spectrum, Sam Konstas at $75k is a bargain and a great complement to Smith. Bringing in both him and Smith means that on average you’re spending $150k a player, significantly less than the $200k average you’d spend on getting Smith and 2 other guns. Great role, great price, I’m keen.
Beau Webster must also be considered given he batted 3 and bowled 3 overs. He didn’t get any reward with the ball, but the role was there. Caution, though, there is a Melbourne Stars bye in the final 3 rounds.
We may have our solution to WKP, and his name: Alex Carey. Carey is a near certainty to bat in the top 4 and has a career average of 53 at Adelaide Oval, where he plays 2 of his 3 remaining games. Marnus Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja only play one game and that’s in Round 8, making them not worth considering.
Best Of The Rest
If we take anything away from the Renegades, it’s that Tom Rogers is their best bowler, and possibly their 2nd best player behind Will Sutherland. His wicket taking ability as well as above average batting makes him an excellent trade target considering how volatile the Renegades top order can be.
Speaking of the Renegades top order, Tim Seifert will have dropped below $110k, making him a superb WKP option considering we know his ceiling from earlier in the season. It’s a $40k upgrade from Sam Harper to Tim Seifert, that’s the stuff dreams are made of.
Michael Neser showcased his quality on his return from injury with a score of 68, which could’ve been bigger, meaning his price remains at $175k, making him affordable. His bowling role up front, combined with batting at 7 and fielding in dangerous spots makes him a perfect target.
Jhye Richardson has been in superb form outside of his game against the Hurricanes, and with the Scorchers needing to win, expect no more rests for Richo. Even better, he has 3 great matchups to finish the regular season, he plays the following teams for these returns:
- Sixers: 65.7ppg
- Thunder: 52.6ppg
- Strikers: 73.8ppg
Very hard to ignore Jhye at around $160k.
Finally, new Thunder recruit Muhammad Hasnain, he has a great record in the BBL, having taken 7 wickets in 5 games at an economy of 6 runs per over. Likely coming in at $152k, I’ll be bringing him in immediately as a bowler of his quality should dominate the BBL.
Let’s wrap this up with a quick guide to some of the Captain and Vice Captain options for round 7 that have the ceiling to make or break your round:
VC options
- Muhammad Hasnain (plays the 1st game of the round vs Hurricanes)
- David Warner (plays the 1st game of the round vs Hurricanes)
- Jhye Richardson (plays the 2nd game of the round vs Sixers)
- Jack Edwards (plays the 2nd game of the round vs Scorchers)
C options
- Jamie Overton (plays the 3rd game of the round vs Heat)
- Michael Neser (plays the 3rd game of the round vs Strikers)
- Marcus Stoinis (plays the last game of the round vs Renegades)
- Will Sutherland (plays the last game of the round vs Stars)
Thank you for reading another Devil’s Advocate, all the best for another round of SuperCoach, where things will inevitably go wrong, and the player you trade out will inevitably do well.
Cheers,
Nathan (SuperCoach Guns)
