Seeing Double: Hobart Hurricanes round 8 focus

The last double game week sprung plenty of surprises. With the doubts over the forecast, a lot of people avoided Thunder players and even put their skipper on a single game week target &#8211; well done if you nailed Sutherland!



The washout at the Sydney Showground between the Thunder and Hurricanes had big impacts on Supercoach this week.



Round 8 is your last chance to capitalise on the beauty that is double game week scoring. And if you’re serious about how to structure your side, you can use your trades in Round 7 to get ahead of the curve.



There’s a few things to factor as well as we edge towards the end of an eventful Big Bash season.



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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">Ugh. Match Abandoned without toss due to rain ☔️ Thank you to our Thunder Nation for making it out to ENGIE Stadium 💚 Ticket purchasers &#8211; Ticketmaster will be in contact within the next 24 hours For our members &#8211; Our membership team will be in touch within the next 24 hours <a href="https://t.co/9pB97HsZfT">pic.twitter.com/9pB97HsZfT</a>&mdash; Sydney Thunder (@ThunderBBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThunderBBL/status/1876925765444358200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 8, 2025</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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The first is that any player you bring in from the Hurricanes, you need to get comfortable that you probably will have to own them in the final round of the year.&nbsp;



With only three trades (or four if you’ve saved a boost) in Round 9, it’ll be hard to completely flush your team of Canes.



The second is the player availability and departure of a lot of overseas from the tournament.&nbsp;



This includes the likes of Jamie Overton, Jacob Bethell and Ben Duckett to begin with, but the list could grow as teams release players if their club is out of finals contention.



The third is that the ‘Canes play the first game of the round in Round 7, meaning they’re an ideal side to bench loop a player from &#8211; so going early on a riskier batting target could be the move.



It’s a long way of saying load up but do so responsibly.



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Round 8 double team: Hobart Hurricanes</h2>



Overview: The Hobart Hurricanes have been one of the surprise packets of the BBL. They’ve turned their home ground into a fortress and have played some great ‘team’ cricket to sit within finals contention.



And good cricket leads to good SuperCoach scores. And we’ve already seen a number of players have some breakout moments this season.



From what we’ve seen through the first six rounds however, there will be some changes to their side. They lose two Internationals in Shai Hope and Waqar Salamkhiel.&nbsp;



And with no word yet on if they will replace them with new Internationals, we have to expect some local players will instead step-up.



So again in short, there’s a ton of different ways you can go about getting Canes into your side.



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Predicted lineup for Round 8:



<ol>
<li>Mitch Owen, 2. Matt Wade, 3. Caleb Jewell, 4. Ben McDermott, 5. Nikhil Chaudary, 6. Tim David, 7. Chris Jordan, 8. Nathan Ellis, 9. Riley Meredith, 10. Peter Hatzoglou/Paddy Dooley, 11. Billy Stanlake</li>
</ol>



Some things to note about the lineup:



We expect Caleb Jewell to step into the number 3 role, but it’s not a sure thing. Locals like Charlie Wakim or even Jake Doran could get the job &#8211; all of these players are largely irrelevant.



We also project that left-arm wrist spinner Waqar will be replaced by existing squad members. This is important as it does create some more room for Nikhil Chaudary to have an expanded role in the side.



Hobart Hurricanes vs Melbourne Renegades (Ninja Stadium, Game 2), vs Brisbane Heat (Gabba, Game 4).



Overview: With only four games in round 8 (Melbourne Stars are on the bye), it makes it difficult to run a decent VC loop.



You’ll basically need to run an Adelaide Striker or Sixer as your Captain (lucky there’s some good choices) if your VC doesn’t nail their score in the first game.



The good news is the Stars have a ‘bye’ during this week so it should be easy to manage your loops via a popular player like Stoinis.



But with that being said, these look like two winnable games. All three teams featuring have had some really good moments this tournament born out of their bowling attacks. And both Ninja Stadium and the Gabba have aided bowlers whilst promoting run scoring.



So it’s a nice double to stick to your guns and bring in the boys with the best roles.



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Who has the best roles at the Hurricanes:



<ul>
<li>Chris Jordan: bowls big overs, can hit a cricket ball and fields in the hot spots. Good stuff all-around.</li>



<li>Riley Meredith: underrated cricketer who can tease out wickets with his pace bowling. Aided when conditions are difficult.</li>



<li>Nathan Ellis: basically copy and paste what has been said above.</li>



<li>Nikhil Chaudhary: a rare commodity and an underrated one given he bats high in the order at five and will chip in with an over or two of spin. He’s a priority target for me.</li>



<li>Tim Owen: opening batter in form. Fields in the hot spots.</li>



<li>Matt Wade: Opening batter with keeper eligibility. Say no more!</li>
</ul>



Who else is worth watching:



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<ul>
<li>Ben McDermott: one of the consistently good batsmen in this competition. Keep an eye on his role once Hope leaves. We prefer him as an opener but he’s been solid at number 4 and is capable of scoring big runs late in the order.</li>



<li>Tim David: wrong type of role for SuperCoach consistency, but has genuine star power and is in form.</li>



<li>Billy Stanlake: had a career resurgence this season and played some good cricket.</li>
</ul>



Who’s the big time gambles:



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<ul>
<li>Caleb Jewell (or whoever replaces Hope up the order): you cannot deny the quality of the role if he does bat in the top 3.</li>



<li>Peter Hatzoglou/Paddy Dooley: A player whose cheap and can chip in with some big overs is a decent commodity.</li>
</ul>



Verdict and strategy:



Personally I already own both Chris Jordan and Riley Meredith. I know most own Jordan already and will want a second bowler &#8211; I think Meredith is a fantastic option and in a battle between him and Ellis as to ‘who to own’ it’s neck and neck.



With two gun wicket-keeper options in their side, I also would like to take a chance on one of Wade or McDermott for my side. We know both have a high ceiling so it’s really down to personal preference.



The ability to lock in one of them in Round 7 is extremely enticing given I can use them in a batting ‘loop’ capacity with how my side is structured.



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Nikhil Chaudhary is the other guy I’m keen to own and will likely go early. Guys like Nik are constantly in the game and finding scoring opportunities with batting, bowling and fielding.



In single game weeks, that is gold. He too could be a bench loop for me, albeit I’m more confident in a player like him in a ‘starting’ role for my side.



Mitch Owen is the ‘form’ player in their batting unit and arguably the best opening batter we have seen this season. He isn’t cheap but again with his capabilities you get what you pay for.



Owen will no doubt be popular &#8211; he’s starred on his home ground. I think he’s a fantastic guy to own but also a discerning guy to go against given that popularity. He plays a high risk brand.



Heading into Round 7 I already own two, and by round 8 I would like those numbers to be at least six which means four of my likely seven trades (I have a boost left) are going in that direction.



Nikhil and a keeper are two of those trades, the others will depend on what we can learn out of their games in between now and then.

Seeing Double: Hobart Hurricanes round 8 focus

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