Sixth-placed Perth Scorchers take on eighth-placed Melbourne Renegades for the second time in the Big Bash League.
Melbourne had defeated Perth by 7 wickets in their first clash. Perth notched up their first win of the tournament defeating Adelaide Strikers by 7 wickets in their last match.
Melbourne lost to Sydney Thunder by 7 runs in a rain-curtailed encounter.
Team News
Jhye Richardson is taking wickets regularly for Perth at the start. Jason Roy found some form in the previous game and Mitchell Marsh looked impressive.
Shaun Marsh has been in ominous form for Melbourne. Sam Harper and Rilee Rossouw need to deliver. Newcomer, Mitchell Perry was quite expensive with the ball.
Pitch and Conditions
Perth will be hosting their first match of the BBL this season. 15 matches have been played in this stadium in the past with the side batting first winning 8 times. Totals between 170 and 190 would be the par score on this pitch. Clear weather is expected to prevail during the match.
Probable Playing XI
Perth Scorchers (PRS): Jason Roy, Liam Livingstone, Colin Munro, Josh Inglis (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Ashton Turner (c), Aaron Hardie, Jhye Richardson, Andrew Tye, Jason Behrendorff, Fawad Ahmed
Melbourne Renegades (MLR): Aaron Finch (c), Shaun Marsh, Sam Harper (wk), Rilee Rossouw, Mohammad Nabi, Imad Wasim, Mackenzie Harvey, Will Sutherland, Kane Richardson, Peter Hatzoglou, Mitchell Perry/ Josh Lalor
Key Battles
Josh Inglis (SCO) vs Mohammad Nabi (REN)
Inglis scored a fine knock of 44 in the last match. The talented wicket-keeper batsman has shown good form in the BBL for the selectors to take note of. He can play both as an opener and as a utility batsman in the middle-order. With a healthy strike rate of 141 in the BBL, he can accelerate the pace of scoring with his power-hitting.
Nabi bowled just one over in the previous game conceding 10 runs. He can unsettle batsmen with his loopy deliveries and clever change of pace. Being a complete T20 player, he is a quintessential all-rounder. He can control the run flow in the middle overs effectively.
Aaron Hardie (SCO) vs Rilee Rossouw(REN)
Rossouw has not lit the BBL on fire managing to score only 99 runs in six matches. He was dismissed for three runs in the last game. The free-stroking southpaw is tactically a sharp player and uses his snappy wrists to time the ball to perfection. Playing his first season in the BBL, he is due for a big knock soon.
Hardie had a good outing with the ball taking two wickets for 21 runs in his four-over quota. The 21-year-old can bowl express pace. Making his debut in the BBL, he can be dangerous in the powerplay.
Prediction
A win for Perth could see them jump to the fifth spot in the points table. Melbourne badly needs a victory to remove themselves from the last spot. Perth has a few big-hitters stacked up and Melbourne have a few bowlers who can trouble the batsmen.
Cricwizz predicts Melbourne Renegades to win the match
