Image Credit- Skysports
Sydney Sixers, who lost to Brisbane Heat at the SCG,
maintained their choice to defy the season-long trend and bowl first in the BBL
final.
This season, the Sixers, the greatest defensive team
in the BBL, have perfected the technique of limiting other teams at the SCG by
setting goals of nearly 155.
Prior to Wednesday’s championship game, data revealed
that, over the previous five years, the Sixers have defended 77% of scores
under 160 when batting first, as opposed to 32% for the whole tournament.
In spite of this, the Sixers decided to bowl first on
Wednesday at the SCG, and as a result, they were forced to chase 167 on a pitch
that has been difficult to score on all season.
“In hindsight everything’s always a bit
different, but we just thought it was going to get better to bat on under
lights,” vice-captain Daniel Hughes said. “We could have restricted
them to maybe a bit less as well, so instead of maybe 167, we could have maybe
got them down to 150.But that wasn’t to be.”
After captain Moises Henriques tested positive on
Monday, Hughes said that the skipper’s Covid case had given him some headaches
in the hours leading up to the championship.
On Tuesday, Henriques held a news conference and
accepted the trophy without informing the media or officials in attendance.
However, on Wednesday, he received instructions to avoid approaching the
players.
“You always want your leader there. He’s a
fantastic leader,” Hughes said. “When we turned up here today [we
found out] he couldn’t be around the team and couldn’t do the toss and just be
around the boys.
“And just to sort of have that disruption at the
start of play…it’s not an excuse, it’s just not [ideal].”