BBL 2018-19, Match 18: Melbourne Renegades vs Adelaide Strikers – Dream11 Fantasy Cricket Tips

The defending champions bounced back with a convincing win over the Sydney Thunder at home in the New Year’s Eve match in which they are yet to be beaten. This win came after back to back losses including a game in Perth where they were bundled out for just 88. They will now face the Melbourne Renegades in the first game of 2019. The Renegades are coming here on the back of two straight losses after consecutive wins to start the tournament. Their batting has failed to step up in all four matches.

The Strikers have the services of Rashid Khan who will remain with the team for the time being following the loss of his father on Sunday. However, they will be losing pacer Peter Siddle due to his commitments with the Australian Test team. Siddle, who picked up a 3-fer in the previous game, will be replaced by Wes Agar in the squad. The Renegades have included Joe Mennie in the squad for this game in place of Andrew Fekete.

Match Details:

The 18th match of the Big Bash League (BBL) will be played between Melbourne Renegades and Adelaide Strikers at the Simonds Stadium in Geelong.

The match starts at 7:15 PM local time (8:15 AM GMT) (1:45 PM IST).

The game will be live on Sony SIX and Sony SIX HD in India. Live streaming is available on Sony Liv.

Pitch Condition/Report:

The pitch in Geelong might not be any different to the ones BBL has produced in this season. We might be in for another low-scoring game based on how the games hosted by this venue turned out to be last season. The spinners and slow bowlers of the home team restricted the opposition to less than 120. As the game will be played on a track used for the WBBL game, once again, the spinners could be coming into the party.

Squads:

Melbourne Renegades:

Tom Cooper (C), Dan Christian, Cameron Boyce, Kane Richardson, Sam Harper, Mackenzie Harvey, Cameron White, Beau Webster, Usman Khan Shinwari, Mohammad Nabi, Jack Wildermuth, Jon Holland, Joe Mennie.

Adelaide Strikers:

Colin Ingram (C), Wes Agar, Alex Carey, Rashid Khan, Ben Laughlin, Jake Lehmann, Michael Neser, Liam O’Connor, Matt Short, Billy Stanlake, Cameron Valente, Jake Weatherald, Jonathan Wells.

Injury and Availability Updates after the announcement of the squads:

(Will be added when there is an update)

Power Picks:

Mohammad Nabi and Daniel Christian’s performances were the base of Renegades’ victories. Nabi scored 35 and 48* respectively and picked one wicket in the first two matches but aggregated only 14 runs in next two games with a wicket to his name. Christian bagged a 3-fer in the first match and made an unbeaten 49 in the next. He went wicketless in the previous two games scoring only 3 and 32 respectively. If both these players are little more consistent, the Renegades can win better.

Captain and Vice-Captain Selection:

Alex Carey has been quite an interesting player in this BBL season as the keeper has scored two fifties from four matches. In the two games where he didn’t, he was dismissed run out. Going by this, making Carey a captain/vice-captain will be fine unless he gets run out. Colin Ingram, Nabi, Christian and Rashid Khan will be other options and alternatives for multipliers.

Playing XI #1 for Head to Head/Small Leagues:

Keeper – Alex Carey (C)

Batters – Sam Harper, Mackenzie Harvey, Colin Ingram, Jonathan Wells

All-Rounders – Mohammad Nabi, Dan Christian, Matt Short

Bowlers – Jack Wildermuth, Kane Richardson, Rashid Khan (VC)

Playing XI #2 for Grand Leagues/Mega Leagues:

Keeper – Alex Carey (VC)

Batters – Tom Cooper, Cameron White, Colin Ingram, Jonathan Wells

All-Rounders – Mohammad Nabi, Dan Christian, Matt Short (C)

Bowlers – Cameron Boyce, Ben Laughlin, Rashid Khan

Expert Advice:

In the current form, both Sam Harper and Mackenzie Harvey are better prospects than Tom Cooper and Cameron White. The senior duo has failed to make a good score in all four matches while Harper and Harvey got starts but failed to convert them.

Probable Winners:

The Adelaide Strikers might dominate the Melbourne Renegades whose batting hasn’t come good this season.

Get the latest Cricket News and updates from Big Bash League, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.