Five hot topics for the Perth Scorchers ahead of the BBL season 14

The BBL kicks off this weekend, with the opening fixture being held right here at the Cauldron as the Perth Scorchers take on the Melbourne Stars on Sunday afternoon.

Article by Clint Testa

And with the Australian Test Cricket summer setup perfectly at one dominant win a piece, here are five hot topics surrounding the Perth Scorchers ahead of BBL|14:

1. Can the ageing list manufacture another finals assault?

For most of the previous 13 seasons of BBL cricket, the Scorchers have been perennial finals contenders, having taken part in the post-season 11 times for a record five titles. But with the nucleus of the side closer to the end of their careers rather than the beginning, the questions around the physical resilience and consistency of form may begin to rear its head.

Ashton Agar (pictured below), Jason Behrendorff, Matt Kelly, Ashton Turner and Andrew Tye are all on the wrong side of 30, and whilst they still add great value when they’re up and running, they’ve also had their fair share of injury concerns over the past couple of seasons. Arguably, the innocuous season-ending knee injury to Ashton Turner last season cost the team a serious shake at the title. For the above group of players, managing their workload will be a main priority to ensure they’re fully fit and firing on all cylinders come the pointy end of the season.

2. How many games will Jhy Richardson and Lance Morris play?

Speaking of injuries, there are few unluckier bowlers in the country right now than Jhy Richardson, a fearful front-line bowler who can rip the heart out of any batting lineup, but who has an uncanny knack of breaking down in the most unconventional of ways. A couple of weeks ago, he popped his shoulder out dishing out a high-five whilst celebrating a wicket.

His partner in crime, Lance Morris (pictured below), is another who needs to take good care of his body considering the extreme pace at which he bowls. If these two guys stay fit, they’ll form a formidable one-two punch in the opening overs. If, however, their bodies let them down, the Scorchers will need to call on their significant bowling depth, with Matt Kelly in solid T20 form over the off-season in the top end, and young Mahli Beardman another bright Under-19 prospect who recently joined the Aussie cricket team on tour in England. And let’s not forget short-form specialists, Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye. So the depth of numbers is there, but the Scorchers would dearly love to exploit the pace and bounce of their home deck by having their two heat seekers fully fit for the majority of the season.

3. Will Finn Allen be able to cover the loss of crowd favourite, Laurie Evans?

How does any team cover 292 runs at an average of 58 and a strike rate of 189? That’s the stat line of Laurie Evans (pictured below) in last year’s BBL, and his absence in the post-season due to commitments in Abu Dhabi was a significant contributor to the Scorchers’ poor showing in their one-and-only final. He’s now made the shift to the Melbourne Renegades after the Scorchers prioritised Kiwi, Finn Allen, at the draft, and all eyes will be on the 25-year-old from across the ditch in his anticipated opening-batsmen role this season. Allen is known for his relentless attack on the new ball, and is capable of clearing the rope consistently, having done so 16 times in one inning against Pakistan earlier this year. His impact at the top of the order will be a critical factor in the Perth Scorchers being able to hit a winning score.

4. Is Cooper Connelly ready to go to the next level?

After his Grand Final heroics two seasons ago, Connelly had an indifferent time of it last season, averaging just 23 across the season. Initially tried unsuccessfully as an opener, he soon dropped down the order, and whilst he found ways to impact the occasional game, the young international prospect would have been disappointed with his overall output. How the team use him this season will be intriguing, but if the likes of Allen, Inglis and Hardie can provide a solid foundation through the early overs, Connelly’s biggest influence could come as a busy middle-order batsman with the potential to go large in the final few overs.

5. How much of the Bison will we see?

Mitch Marsh’s emergence as a key pillar of the Australian middle order in all formats has meant a significantly reduced impact for the Perth Scorchers over the past couple of years. He hasn’t featured in a single game since the 2021/22 season, even though other test players have been released to make the odd cameo, here and there. The powers-that-be from within Cricket Australia seem reluctant to let injury-prone Marsh loose in the helter skelter environment of the Big Bash, preferring for him to put up his heels in between national commitments. This season, however, there’s a three week break between the final day of the Sydney test, and the first day of the away test against Sri Lanka at the end of January. It’s unlikely he’ll be available for the finals should the Scorchers make it that far, but one or two guest appearances in front of his home town crowd would certainly get the fans streaming through the gates.

Head to perthscorchers.com.au for their full BBL14 fixture, and to grab tickets to their upcoming home games.

Image Credit: Perth Scorchers via Facebook.