Preview: Heat's squad of match winners 'ready to go'

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BBL|10 result: Third, lost Challenger final

Squad: Tom Abell (England), Xavier Bartlett, James Bazley, Max Bryant, Tom Cooper, Ben Duckett (England), Sam Heazlett, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Chris Lynn, Michael Neser, Jimmy Pierson, Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Afghanistan), Mark Steketee, Connor Sully, Mitchell Swepson, Jack Wildermuth, Matthew Willans

Ins: Tom Abell, Ben Duckett, Michael Neser (Adelaide Strikers), Connor Sully

Outs: Joe Burns (Melbourne Stars), Lewis Gregory, Ben Laughlin, Dan Lawrence, Morne Morkel

Possible Best XI: Max Bryant, Ben Duckett, Chris Lynn, Marnus Labuschagne, Tom Abell, Jimmy Pierson (wk), Jack Wildermuth, Michael Neser, Mark Steketee, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mitchell Swepson

Possible Best XI for first game: Max Bryant, Ben Duckett, Chris Lynn, Sam Heazlett, Tom Cooper, Jimmy Pierson (wk), Jack Wildermuth, Connor Sully, Xavier Bartlett, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Matt Kuhnemann

The Heat made a late run for the title in BBL|10, being knocked out by runners up the Perth Scorchers in the penultimate game of the season.

Those late season matches showed just how big the potential is for a perennially inconsistent Brisbane side, who have the makings of a title-winning team when everything clicks.

Wade Seccombe will take the reins from former Australian coach Darren Lehmann and will have two new English internationals to cover the loss of both Lewis Gregory and Dan Lawrence.

Tom Abell (who will join the squad after the England Lions tour match) and Ben Duckett will take over from their countrymen, adding some class to go with the power hitting of Max Bryant and Chris Lynn at the top of the order.

Marnus Labuschagne’s Test duties mean he is unlikely to play unless the Heat reach the finals, leaving the likes of Sam Heazlett and Tom Cooper to fill his place in the top six.

Mujeeb Ur Rahman will again be pivotal with the ball and will look for a more stable BBL campaign after contracting COVID-19 and departing early for national duties last season. Additionally, the Heat have an abundance of pace options, with Jack Wildermuth and local product Connor Sully set to shoulder the load while Michael Neser and Mark Steketee have red ball duties.

Mitchell Swepson will also be unavailable indefinitely after finding himself in the Test squad, meaning Matt Kuhnemann could be given the chance to continue his strong early season form at domestic level, as the Heat strive for back-to-back finals berths for the first time since the competition’s initial two seasons.

The inside word with Heat coach Wade Seccombe:

The off-season

"We've had a good off-season … for a lot of our players, we've been doing T20 work from a long way back, so I'd like to think that we've prepared well and are ready to go. Every player, every club that operates wants to create a consistency in their performance so that's something that we will be striving for. We've also got to be very adaptable in the way we approach games and play games and adaptable in the schedule and what lies ahead for us as well."

Players to watch

"That's always a tough question. We've got match winners across the park and that's what I really like about our squad this year. Obviously, Chris (Lynn) is a match winner at the top, Max Bryant on his day, we've got the English guys through the middle and then we've got a very strong bowling line-up as well. Without singling anyone out, I'd like to think the squad we've assembled will perform across the park and everyone's capable of winning the game at any point in time, so time will tell who stands up."

The imports

"We've seen Mujeeb (Ur Rahman) for the past four years here in Brisbane and he brings a wonderful skill set and allows us to have an attacking spinner at any stage of the game, he's involved just about anywhere. Ben Duckett, we've signed him off on the back of his performances in England over the last period of time – a left hander is always handy, and he plays spin very well. That's an area of our game that's an opportunity for us to really nail. Ben will most likely be sitting at the top of the order. That's where he's done his best work, so we'd be mad not to play him in his best position. And Tom Abell is coming in to manage the middle overs and the back end of the game."

Biggest threat

"Every team is strong, and we've got to prepare equally as well against all our opposition. They all put together strong squads and there's a few of them that have performed particularly well in recent years. You're quite mindful of the teams that have had good success in previous years, because winning can be a habit and players know how to win."

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