Quantcast

How your club is shaping up for BBL|10

Here is how each Big Bash club's roster looks ahead of the player contracting period opening up in the coming weeks

With the player contracting window for KFC Big Bash clubs set to open in the coming weeks, we have laid out all the details on who your team has under lock and key and who could be testing the open market. 

Here's a team-by-team look at how things are shaping up.

Adelaide Strikers

BBL|09 result: Third (lost in Knockout final to Sydney Thunder)

BBL|10 squad so far: Travis Head, Michael Neser, Harry Nielsen, Matt Short, Peter Siddle, Billy Stanlake, Cameron Valente, Jake Weatherald, Jon Wells

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Wes Agar, Alex Carey, Harry Conway, Rashid Khan (Afg), Jake Lehmann, Liam O'Connor, Phil Salt (Eng), Cameron White, Nick Winter

HAT-TRICK! Sixers feel the wrath of Khan in Adelaide

Presuming star import Rashid Khan gets his wish and returns to the city of churches and gloveman Alex Carey does likewise, the Strikers still have the bare bones of their BBL09 side that finished third.

Their Knockout final exit to the Thunder exposed their reliance on the likes of their leading lights – Carey, Rashid, Peter Siddle, Travis Head, Michael Neser and breakout star Jon Wells – as they failed to chase a modest total despite solid efforts from those six.

Improvement from younger players like Billy Stanlake and Matt Short, who both underperformed last summer, will make them a more consistent force, as could the touted addition of Matthew Renshaw.

Finding another reliable fast bowler or two (Wes Agar, who took 17 wickets but was expensive at times last season, is off contract) to complement Siddle and Neser, as well as adding some spin depth to cover for Rashid, may also be priorities.

Brisbane Heat

BBL|09 result: Seventh

BBL|10 squad so far: Tom Banton (Eng), Max Bryant, Joe Burns, Ben Cutting, Matthew Kuhnemann, Ben Laughlin, Chris Lynn, Jimmy Peirson

BBL|09 squad members off contract: AB de Villiers (SA), Cameron Gannon, Sam Heazlett, Zahir Khan (Afg), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Lalor, James Pattinson, Jack Prestwidge, Matthew Renshaw, Mark Steketee, Mitch Swepson, Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Afg)

AB de Villiers delights with extraordinary late explosion

Some off-season soul searching has been in order for perennial underachievers Brisbane Heat, who were once again all sizzle and no snag in BBL09.

Whether the Heat can re-engage AB de Villiers will be a major BBL storyline but the South African, who had a solid though not outstanding initial campaign, cannot be expected to be the club's panacea.

Chris Lynn wins matches off his own bat and Tom Banton, the young Englishman who has signed on for next season, showed he can do the same. But finding other batters to fire consistently remains an ongoing issue, and will be compounded if Renshaw leaves the club as has been speculated.

Afghan spinners Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Zahir Khan were the Heat's two most economical bowlers last season; re-signing one or both, or another overseas spinner in their mould, would seem prudent.

As would finding some pace reinforcements given Ben Laughlin remains the only fast bowler on their list. Retaining the services of the unheralded Josh Lalor, who quietly had a solid campaign with the ball in BBL09, should help.

Hobart Hurricanes

BBL|09 result: Fourth (lost the Eliminator final to the Sydney Thunder)

BBL|10 squad so far: Scott Boland, Jake Doran, James Faulkner, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, David Moody, D'Arcy Short, Matthew Wade

Departures: George Bailey (retired)

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Qais Ahmad (Afg), David Miller (SAF), Nathan Ellis, Jarrod Freeman, Caleb Jewell, Simon Milenko, Jake Reed, Tom Rogers, Clive Rose, Aaron Summers, Mac Wright

Hurricanes celebrate the legend of Salmo

The Hurricanes have all the building blocks in place. Should they find the right pieces to put around them, the club has the makings of a title-winning team after some near-misses in recent seasons.

They unearthed a gem in Nathan Ellis, who went from uncontracted to becoming one of the competition's best death bowlers in a single season, but will now have to pay him considerably more to keep him given the demand for his skills.

But if he returns and James Faulkner and Riley Meredith are at their best next season, Hobart have a lot of bases already covered on the bowling front. Qais Ahmad has shown enough to suggest he's worth getting back as well.

Hobart also have a couple of vacancies in their middle-order following the retirement of George Bailey and David Miller's contract finishing. Should they find a couple of consistent players to complement D'Arcy Short, Matthew Wade and Ben McDermott, their line-up could become even more imposing.

Melbourne Renegades

BBL|09 result: Eighth

BBL|10 squad so far: Cameron Boyce, Dan Christian, Zak Evans, Aaron Finch, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sam Harper, Marcus Harris, Mackenzie Harvey, Jon Holland, Shaun Marsh, Kane Richardson, Will Sutherland, Beau Webster, Jack Wildermuth

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Tom Andrews, Tom Cooper, Alex Doolan, Andrew Fekete, Richard Gleeson (Eng), Harry Gurney (Eng), Nathan McSweeney, Joe Mennie, Mohammad Nabi (Afg), Samit Patel (Eng), Luke Robins, Brayden Stepien

Does Mohammad Nabi know who Dan Christian is?

Melbourne Renegades will need significant improvement from within if they are to make amends for a horror defence of their BBL title.

Their hodge podge of internationals from last season aside, Tom Cooper is the only regular from BBL09 who is off-contract, giving them little room to manoeuvre for local signings.

It's not all doom and gloom though. Beau Webster's superb individual campaign showed that you never know when a talented player might take the leap. The likes of Will Sutherland, Jake Fraser-McGurk and even more experienced heads like Sam Harper and Jack Wildermuth could provide a similar spark.

If they have some better luck with their international signings (Usman Shinwari and Faheem Ashraf pulled out on the eve of the tournament, while Harry Gurney was limited to four games due to injury), expect a significantly better Gades outfit.

Melbourne Stars

BBL|09 result: Runners-up (first on the regular season standings)

BBL|10 squad so far: Hilton Cartwright, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ben Dunk, Seb Gotch, Clint Hinchliffe, Nic Maddinson, Glenn Maxwell, Lance Morris, Tom O'Connell, Marcus Stoinis, Daniel Worrall, Adam Zampa

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Pat Brown (Eng), Jackson Coleman, Samuel Elliot, Peter Handscomb, Dilbar Hussain (Pak), Sandeep Lamichhane (Nep), Nick Larkin, Jonathan Merlo, Haris Rauf (Pak), Dale Steyn (SA)

Stoinis and Handscomb: A special bond

The silver lining in the Stars' remarkable series of finals flops is that the fact they keep making the finals in the first place.

Peter Handscomb and Nick Larkin aside, the bulk of the local players who saw the club to their eighth finals appearance in nine seasons remain under contract, meaning they are well-placed to challenge for an elusive maiden title.

The Stars should not count on having player-of-the-tournament Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell available for the whole campaign again, like they did last summer. But Ben Dunk and Nic Maddinson, both proven match-winners coming off poor seasons with the bat, are capable of making up at least some of that pair's output with the bat.

If they can again land quality international talents – luring Haris Rauf back for some part of the season after a breathtaking maiden campaign that propelled him into international cricket will be a priority – expect the Stars to again be a force.

Perth Scorchers

BBL|09 result: Sixth

BBL|10 squad so far: Ashton Agar, Fawad Ahmed, Cameron Bancroft, Jason Behrendorff, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kelly, Mitchell Marsh, Kurtis Patterson, Jhye Richardson, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, Sam Whiteman

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Joel Paris, Tim David, Liam Guthrie, Nick Hobson, Chris Jordan (Eng), Liam Livingstone (Eng), Jaron Morgan, Morne Morkel (SA)

Big Bash's best ever? Air Jordan flies for all-time classic

Fresh off the two worst seasons of its short history, the BBL's most successful club is also locked in to the core of its group from last season.

The Scorchers' success in previous seasons has been based primarily on loyalty from Western Australian locals, combined with shrewd overseas signings. While the WA-first approach has been relaxed a little since Justin Langer handed over the coaching reigns to Adam Voges, expect the club to again rely more on internal improvement than big-name recruits.

Absent from all of last season due to injury, Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye will bring a breath of fresh air to the bowling stocks. Adding those two to an attack that, Fawad Ahmed and Jhye Richardson aside, struggled at times to contain opposition teams should be an enormous boost.

Expect significantly-improved results if they can bring back Liam Livingstone or find a similarly explosive top-order batter to replace him.

Sydney Sixers

BBL|09 result: Champions (second on the regular season standings)

BBL|10 squad so far: Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird, Tom Curran (Eng), Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Nathan Lyon, Stephen O'Keefe, Josh Philippe, Lloyd Pope, Jordan Silk

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Justin Avendano, Mickey Edwards, Daniel Fallins, Josh Hazlewood, Hayden Kerr, Ben Manenti, Steve Smith, Henry Thornton, James Vince (Eng)

CHAMPIONS! Sixers down Stars to win second BBL title

A formidable outfit at full strength, the Sixers did a masterful job of finding players who could make meaningful contributions when the likes of Sean Abbott, Stephen O'Keefe and Tom Curran missed games.

Curran was again a top performer for the Sixers last summer and has a long-term deal with the club.

The Sixers will hope Josh Hazlewood, Steve Smith, Nathan Lyon (who all played in their finals campaign last summer) or even Mitchell Starc can slide for the odd game when international duties permit, though they may not be as fortunate to have so many of them available at the pointy end of the season.

With their bowling stocks pretty healthy, finding another quality top-order batter (overseas or local) who is available for most of the season to partner rising star and BBL09 player of the final Josh Philippe seems a logical move.

Sydney Thunder

BBL|09 result: Fifth (lost the Challenger final to Melbourne Stars)

BBL|10 squad so far: Jonathan Cook, Oliver Davies, Brendan Doggett, Callum Ferguson, Matt Gilkes, Chris Green, Usman Khawaja, Nathan McAndrew, Alex Ross, Daniel Sams, Jason Sangha, Tanveer Sangha, Chris Tremain

BBL|09 squad members off contract: Liam Bowe, Alex Hales (Eng), Liam Hatcher, Jay Lenton, Chris Morris (SA), Arjun Nair, Gurinder Sandhu

Sams recounts his record-setting BBL campaign

The fact the Thunder snuck under the radar to finish one win away from a berth in the final will be of great encouragement to coach Shane Bond given their potential for further improvement.

Alex Hales was the most successful overseas batter in the competition last season, so getting him back on board or finding someone else who can go close to matching his output will go a long way to ensuring their top-order is as much of a force as it was in BBL09.

Finding an attacking spinner to complement the underrated duo of Jono Cook and Chris Green, as well as settling on a pace combination to put around ace quick Daniel Sams will likely be high on their off-season agenda.

The Thunder may well look within to address those areas; Matt Gilkes, Tanveer Sangha and Oliver Davies are all highly-rated youngsters on their books, while Green's expected return from a throwing ban will be a boost.