Who will win Perth Scorchers vs Melbourne Stars Semi-Final?
With the league stage done and dusted, the Big Bash League 2016-17 is heading towards an intriguing climax as Perth Scorchers take on the Melbourne Stars in the first semi-final. This blockbuster event will be held on January 24 at the Western Australia Cricket Association Ground, Perth. Live action starts at 4:40 PM local time.
Toss
The last two BBL matches played at the WACA were won by the side that batted second. So the team that wins the toss on Tuesday might prefer chasing at this ground. Betting on Perth Scorchers will be a smart move if they happen to chase. They have batted second in their previous three games here and have ended up winners on two occasions.
Read on for team previews, betting tips, odds and match prediction for the first semi-final between Perth Scorchers and Melbourne Stars, Big Bash League 2016-17....
Perth Scorchers Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Perth Scorchers are unlikely to make any changes to their playing eleven for the upcoming semi-final clash. None of their players are reported to be injured.
Key Players
Shaun Marsh finally hit form as he struck his first fifty of the season in the last match against the Hurricanes and he will be Perth's key batsman along with Michael Klinger. Klinger is the leading run-getter in the history of the BBL and we predict him to score the big runs against the Stars. Mitchell Johnson and Andrew Tye will be the major threats with the ball and these two are likely to cause the most damage.
Recent Form
Perth Scorchers have ended the round-robin stage of BBL 2016-17 as top toppers after securing five wins from eight league matches. They put up an allround performance in their final league match, beating the Hobart Hurricanes by a comfortable margin of seven wickets and 37 balls to spare.
Perth Scorchers Predicted XI
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SM Whiteman (wk), M Klinger, SE Marsh, AC Voges (c), AJ Turner, AC Agar, AJ Tye, MG Johnson, HWR Cartwright, TT Bresnan and IR Bell.
Melbourne Stars Team News & Playing 11
Team News
Allrounder Marcus Stoinis has been released from international duties and is certain to replace Sam Harper for this big semi-final match of BBL 06. Fast bowler Dan Worrall could play in place of spinner Liam Bowe if he clears a fitness test on Monday night.
Key Players
The Stars will be counting on their two most consistent batsmen Kevin Pietersen and Luke Wright to come up good with the bat. Both are among this year's top 10 batsmen and they have the ability to take the game away quickly from the opposition. While Scott Boland will be the key for the Stars among the pacers, Michael Beer will be the main weapon in the spin attack. He bowled a match-winning spell of 2-12 against the Scorchers in the league stage and we predict him to replicate that performance.
Recent Form
Melbourne Stars won four and lost as many from their eight league games, edging out cross-town rivals Melbourne Renegades for the fourth spot on the points table on account of better net run-rate. They lost their last two league-stage games to Brisbane Heat and Sydney Sixers.
Melbourne Stars Predicted XI
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RJ Quiney, LJ Wright, KP Pietersen, EP Gulbis, SE Gotch (wk), DJ Hussey (c), Marcus Stoinis, BW Hilfenhaus, SM Boland, MA Beer and L Bowe.
Perth Scorchers vs Melbourne Stars Head-to-Head
Out of the ten matches played between the two sides, Perth Scorchers have won four and Melbourne Stars six. They have met six times at the WACA with both winning on three occasions each. The last three matches have been won by the stars, two of which were played at this ground.
Perth Scorchers vs Melbourne Stars Betting Odds
Melbourne Stars did not have a fitting finish to the league round as they ended up on the losing side in their last two fixtures. However, they did beat the Perth Scorchers in a rather convincing fashion when the two teams met at the WACA on January 14. Also, they have beaten them four times in their previous five attempts which makes them a very enticing bet at 2.32 with betfair and 2.20 bet365.
The Scorchers have the reputation of being the most successful and consistent team in the BBL history. They have gone past the semi-finals three times out of five and are favorites to make their fourth appearance in the final at 1.75 with 1xbet and 1.72 with bet365.
Perth Scorchers vs Melbourne Stars Prediction
Perth Scorchers and Melbourne Stars have made it to semis for the sixth consecutive time and while the former have progressed further three times in the past, the latter have managed to overcome this knockout round just once. What this suggests is that the Stars have not been as good in holding their nerves as the Scorchers when it comes to the big pressure games.
The Scorchers will certainly have the advantage of playing at home but having said that, they will also be wary of the fact that they have lost their last two games here in addition to being beaten by the Stars the last couple of times they played them at this ground. All in all, the hosts may have faced failures against the Stars in recent times but taking their consistency factor into account, we feel they are still favorites to make the finals day.
Final Verdict: Back Perth Scorchers to beat Melbourne Stars in the first semi-final at 1.75 with 1xbet and 1.72 with bet365.
Jan 24, 2017
14:10 IST / 8:40 GMT
W.A.C.A. Ground - Perth, Australia
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