The BBL grand final has already had a heartbreaking story, with Perth Scorchers paceman Jhye Richardson ruled out due to injury. The Scorchers advanced to Saturday’s decider with a seven-wicket victory over the Sydney Sixers in Perth. The Scorchers will attempt to win their fifth title in front of a crowd of around 50,000 at Optus Stadium.
Jhye Richardson injured his hamstring on January 4 and was expected to be ready for the finals. However, the 26-year-old will be unable to participate in the Scorchers’ bid for back-to-back titles because the club does not want to risk further injury to Richardson’s body.
“I think Jhye’s chances are pretty slim. I’d be surprised if we see him next weekend,” Scorchers captain Ashton Turner said.
“Jhye’s such an exciting cricketer, but he’s still a young guy.”
“He puts his body through a lot. We’re really thankful he’s done everything he can to get up for the finals campaign. We know how valuable he is,” he added.
Kelly missed ‘The Qualifier’ win over the Sixers due to concussion, while Hatzoglou was left out entirely after the Scorchers decided not to field a specialist spinner.
The Scorchers will be without paceman Lance Morris due to international commitments for the decider, leaving coach Adam Voges to choose between paceman Matt Kelly and spinner Peter Hatzoglou.
Turner was the hero on Saturday night, scoring an unbeaten 84 off 47 balls to help the Scorchers recover from 3-22 to reach their target of 152 with nine balls to spare. Cameron Bancroft (53 off 45 balls) also contributed significantly to the victory.
An unbeaten 8️⃣4️⃣ runs, stepping up when the team needed him 💪 Ashton Turner is making a habit of winning big games 😏 #MADETOUGH #BBL12 #FireUpTheFurnace pic.twitter.com/uSuZnooKH5
— Perth Scorchers (@ScorchersBBL) January 28, 2023
The Sixers still have a chance to make the grand final, but they must first defeat either the Melbourne Renegades or the Brisbane Heat in ‘The Challenger’ in Sydney next Thursday.
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