Preview: Thunder look to strike back

The squad: Fawad Ahmed, Aiden Blizzard, Jos Buttler (OS), Pat Cummins, Callum Ferguson, Ryan Gibson, Chris Green, Liam Hatcher, Usman Khawaja, Jay Lenton, Mitchell McClenaghan (OS), Clint McKay, Arjun Nair, Kurtis Patterson, Ben Rohrer, Gurinder Sandhu, Shane Watson.

Ins: Jos Buttler (ENG), Andrew Fekete (Heat), Mitchell McClenaghan (NZ), Callum Ferguson (Renegades), Liam Hatcher (rookie)

Outs: Andre Russell (suspended), Carlos Brathwaite (unsigned), Jake Doran (unsigned), Nathan McAndrew (unsigned), Alister McDermott (unsigned), Eoin Morgan (unsigned), James Vince (unsigned)

The inside word: He might be somewhat of an unknown to some Australian fans, but Kiwi recruit Mitchell McClenaghan is an undisputed star of the international T20 circuit. A key player in IPL title wins with Mumbai in 2015 and 2017, the left-arm quick opted out of his New Zealand contract earlier this year to focus exclusively on overseas T20 leagues. A speedy bowler with clever variations, McClenaghan enters the tournament in good form as well; he's the leading wicket-taker early in NZ's domestic one-day competition having taken eight wickets at 16.5 from three matches.

The talking points: The Thunder have recruited shrewdly in the off-season, but they will be missing plenty of star power from previous years. West Indian allrounder Andre Russell (suspended) and English batsman Eoin Morgan (unsigned) leave big gaps to fill, and Australian stars Patrick Cummins and Usman Khawaja are expected to miss big chunks of the tournament due to international duty. But overseas duo Jos Buttler and Mitchell McClenaghan are genuine match-winners, while Australian veteran Callum Ferguson is a more-than-handy pick-up for the BBL|05 champions. The key for the Thunder will be to start well; three of their first four games are away from home so if they can open the season with a 2-2 record, they will be in a good position when the return to Spotless Stadium in the new year.

BBL|06 result: Having claimed the BBL|05 title, the Thunder came back down to earth with a last-placed finish last season. Injuries to some key players hurt the defending champions as they lost their first four matches to all but end their campaign before it got out of second gear. A memorable win over the Stars and a late change in fortunes wasn't enough to salvage their season and they finished with just three victories.

The one to watch: Leg-spinners are valuable assets in T20 cricket and Fawad Ahmed will again be a key strike bowler for the Thunder this summer. The Pakistan-born leggie picked up nine wickets at an impressive economy rate of 6.79 last season, including a match-winning 4-14 against rivals the Sixers at the SCG. The 35-year-old was in good wicket-taking form with the white-ball during October's JLT One-Day Cup and he'll be keen to replicate that in Thunder green over the coming months.

The pressure on: Thunder skipper Shane Watson has been in red-hot form in Sydney Premier Cricket and he'll need to continue that in the BBL if the Thunder are to push for a spot in the play-offs. With Usman Khawaja set to miss the first part of the tournament (and possibly the second half as well if he earns an ODI recall in January) and Englishman Jos Buttler signed on for the first six games only, the Thunder's hopes of some match-winning totals will rest largely with Watson. The likes of recruit Callum Ferguson, veteran Ben Rohrer and young gun Ryan Gibson should offer good support, but Watson is their batting linchpin.

The fixtures: Dec 19 v Sixers (home), Dec 22 v Strikers (away), Dec 27 v Heat (away), Dec 30 v Hurricanes (away), Jan 1 v Hurricanes (home), Jan 7 v Strikers (home), Jan 11 v Scorchers (home), Jan 13 v Sixers (away), Jan 20 v Stars (away), Jan 24 v Renegades (home)