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'Disrespectful' remark still burns Thunder

Cross-town rivals set the scene for fiery BBL opener, while Shane Watson says pressure is on the Stars to deliver a title

A comment from Sixers star batsman Daniel Hughes almost 12 months ago has again lit the fuse for a fiery Sydney Smash against the Thunder tonight.

The cross-town rivals will open the KFC Big Bash League season at Spotless Stadium, their first clash since the Thunder crushed the Sixers by eight wickets at the SCG last January.

Image Id: F8124A5ABBF54F52B33313D1E70F2BCB Image Caption: The moustachioed Hughes will be a key player for the Thunder tonight // Getty

That result came after Hughes, the Sixers left-hander who scored 304 runs last season, had fired up the Thunder by declaring before the match that his side "would love nothing more to knock them out" of the tournament with a win.

"If you look at the overall record, the Sixers have them by a fair margin," former Thunder batsman Hughes had said, pointing to his side's dominant history over their rivals. "We know we’ve got the wood on them."

The throwaway remark fired up the Thunder and particularly skipper Shane Watson, who gave Hughes a fiery send-off when he dismissed him during the Thunder's win.

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Almost a year later, Watson said he still hasn't forgotten Hughes' comments.

"I definitely thought it was disrespectful at that moment in time, and it will be used as motivation again," Watson said.

"We’ll be motivated just to get one up on the Sixers.

"We’ve always been seen as the ‘little brother’ of the NSW franchises, but there’s no doubt that was a burning ambition for us after we saw a few comments from Daniel Hughes.

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"Daniel is an incredible batsman, he’s batted incredibly well in the Big Bash and playing well in domestic cricket, so I won’t take anything away from him.

"He’s one of their danger men, but he did provide us with that extra motivation."

The Sixers will take a 8-3 overall record against the Thunder into tonight's clash, with the three Thunder victories coming in the past two seasons.

Last season saw two one-sided results; the Sixers crushed the Thunder by nine wickets in the opening match of the tournament before they managed to score just 99 in that loss at the SCG.

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The Sixers were runners up in BBL|06, while the Thunder's title defence ended with them finishing in last place.

Watson also dialled up the heat on Melbourne Stars on Monday, saying they're under pressure to finally convert their BBL dominance into a title.

Despite making the finals every season since the tournament's inception six years ago, the Stars have so far failed to lift the BBL trophy.

While Watson was full of praise for the club, describing them as one of the teams to beat, he said expectation was resting heavily on their shoulders.

"There's massive pressure on them, absolutely," Watson said.

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"With the calibre of players they've had from the start really, there's extra pressure every year when they don't get over that final hurdle.

"Their squad is affected by one-day selection as well so they have to make sure their squad has a lot of depth.

"There's definitely a lot of pressure on them to convert but they do have an amazing squad this season."

The Stars will boast an all-star batting line-up including Glenn Maxwell, Luke Wright and Kevin Pietersen, playing in potentially his last BBL.

Ricky Ponting's Stars preview and prediction

The recruitment of Ben Dunk, last year's leading BBL run scorer, is the cherry on top for Stephen Fleming's side.

Asked if the Stars had been underachievers after bowing out in the semi-finals on five occasions and losing the final once, Dunk said: "Certainly not.

"My perception is that they we're getting to the finals every year and as a team that's what you want and then you hope that within those two years there's someone who can win the match for you.

"I always looked on at the Stars with envy, playing in big games at the MCG."

Tonight's match will start at 7.45pm AEDT on Tuesday at Spotless Stadium.

Sydney Thunder: Shane Watson (c), Fawad Ahmed, Aiden Blizzard, Jos Buttler, Andrew Fekete, Callum Ferguson, Ryan Gibson, Chris Green, Nathan McAndrew, Mitch McClenaghan, Arjun Nair, Kurtis Patterson, Ben Rohrer

Sydney Sixers: Moises Henriques (c), Sean Abbott, Sam Billings, Doug Bollinger, Johan Botha, Harry Conway, Daniel Hughes, Nic Maddinson, Peter Nevill, Stephen O’Keefe, Jason Roy, Daniel Sams, Jordan Silk

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