Bargain buys: Key cheapies to target

• SQUAD BREAKDOWN: Sydney Sixers analysis, predicted XI
• FULL SQUADS: Team lists, prices, positions

Here are the major cheapies to consider under $100,000 as the 2020/21 SuperCoach Big Bash season kicks into gear.

Things to consider:

• BBL starts December 10
• Australia A play two matches against India 6^th-8^th of December and 11^th-13^th of December.
• Australia v India Test series starts December 17
• Closely monitor squads because no one knows exactly if/when players will be released, so I have made a mention of this at the end of each write up.

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In no particular order:

Will Pucovski $42,000

It looks like only a matter of time before he earns a Baggy Green. Will it be this summer? Would he be included in the Stars line up or is he more of a red-ball specialist?

If picked, many teams will have him because he will open the batting you would assume.

Having just posted consecutive double tons in the Sheffield Shield against WA, Pucovski earned a call up to the Test squad and looks likely to face India in the opener which would rule him out of SuperCoach contention.

Jack Wildermuth $62,500

Wildermuth has made the move back to the Heat this year. He didn’t play many games last year and finished with a smelly, smelly average of 18.7 SuperCoach points.

If you go back one more edition of the tournament though his numbers make for interesting reading.

He had scores of 88, 80 and 72 in the opening six games and he had a price of $137,300.

He has the added advantage of the BAT/BWL eligibility too. He won’t be batting extremely high in the order, but with Cutting and Pattinson leaving this year, there should be some overs for him and hopefully he can blast a few at the end of the innings with the bat. He looks like he will start in the best XI at this stage.

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Cameron Green $62,500

A bit like Pucovski, when will he be included for national honours?

Last year, he started at $42,000 but batted too low and only had a high score of 47 SuperCoach points. Ignore this.

He is back bowling a bit (he didn’t bowl last BBL), he’s in fine form with the bat and looks to be one of the most popular players to be picked, if he is not busy being involved with higher honours having been selected in the Australian Test squad.

Matthew Short $65,300

Short has been listed as a batsman only this year but has been a dual BAT/BWL previously.

At the time of writing, the Strikers barely have anyone under contract so at this stage he starts in their XI.

He averaged a measly 22.8 SuperCoach points last season but did have a high score of 71 points when he made 33 off 20 batting at number six.

He did start batting last season at number 3 and can potentially bowl a couple of overs depending on team make up.

He’s worth monitoring but it’s also worth noting that the Strikers have the bye in the opening round.

He will have a very low ownership with only 5% of teams currently owning him.

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Tom Cooper $78,900

Cooper has moved from the Renegades to the Heat this season. He had a top score of 87 last season after what overall was a really disappointing tournament averaging 27.6 SuperCoach points.

Going back a couple of years he averaged 63.3 points including a massive 174 point round.

Can he recapture some of this form with the move to the Heat? With Matthew Renshaw leaving there could be a role for an anchor type batsman, so all the other Heat batters can play with typical aggression.

He could also send down the odd over of spin (can you really call it that?!). Perhaps he’s one to watch with only 2% ownership at the time of writing.

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Peter Handscomb $97,600

Handscomb has moved from the Stars to the Hurricanes this year. He looks like he has been recruited to fill a key role and hopefully starts the tournament batting well up the order with Matthew Wade likely to be included in the Test team.  

He has previously been involved in the national set up but at this stage looks unlikely to be called up to national duties during the tournament. He had a top score of 101 points last year when making 65 off 39 balls.

Noor Ahmad $62,500

Ahmad will be here pre-Christmas before the arrival of Imran Tahir midway through the tournament.

He is a very young (15 years old!) and is a promising spinner from Afghanistan. Is there such a thing as too young and inexperienced? Will he be overwhelmed by the occasion?

How many games can he play with spinning options (including Nabi and Boyce) in the Renegades squad?

In any case, I’ll be watching on with interest. If he progresses to be half of a Rashid Khan, he will be a gun!

Billy Stanlake $75,400

Stanlake has made the move from Adelaide to the Stars in a bid to recapture some form.

There are some suggestions that the dimensions of the MCG would suit his bowling style.

Early games in the hub away look like they will make him less effective. He can score big, there are scores of 122 and 111 if you go back to earlier editions of the tournament.

However, he can score super low with scores of 6, -3, 6, 9, 3 and 4 reflecting that when he is off, he is really off and won’t bowl all his overs and may go for lots of runs.

My early thoughts are that he is not for me, but the Stars do have the double in Round 1.

It wouldn’t be SuperCoach without changing your initial team set up a few different times.

Nic Maddinson $78,100

Maddinson is a bit like big Billy for me. He was initially a big no based on previous form (highest average of 27.3 over the past three years), but by golly he has the ability to take the league by storm. Will the double in Round 1 prove a tempter for some players?

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Will Sutherland $79,900

Another player with the lovely flexibility of BAT/BWL. Only young at 21, but a potential match winner with bat or ball.

He finished last season on a high with a ripper score of 153 after opening up the bowling and taking 3/30. 

Pace internationals Gleeson and Gurney are gone, as well as the options of Christian (Sixers) and Wildermuth (Heat), so it looks like he has a stable role in the XI to fill. He has been selected in the Australia A squad which is likely to impact his availability in the early stages of the tournament.

Mitch Owen $42,000

Owen is as cheap as they come and the versatility of his BAT/BWL eligibility is key.

He is a young player with big wraps on him down in Tasmania. He started the cricket season injured, so monitor if he is likely to get a game this season.

With squads still to develop, it’s tricky to determine who could play. If he doesn’t play, this could be a great flexible loophole option.

Matthew Gilkes $62,500

He looks likely to start the campaign as the number one keeper option at the Thunder and at this stage is the lowest priced keeper most likely to play in Round 1. 

He played a few matches but never really scored anything of note last season.

His highest score of 52 SuperCoach points came against the Stars when he made some runs batting at number four.

He didn’t play after Round 8 when Jay Lenton was the keeper (Lenton is not on the list this year).

Sam Billings won’t arrive till midway through the tournament so his position looks pretty safe.

Oliver Davies $42,000

Davies comes with big wraps following some stunning form in Sydney grade cricket.

The Thunder’s batting order looks tough to crack, but if he earns a call up he’ll warrant serious consideration at bottom dollar.

I hope this article helps. Remember, SuperCoach is full of opinions, listen to them but use your own judgement. It’s more fun that way!

Please note that our statistics come from cricinfo.com.au, while SuperCoach season averages come from the official game page.