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The Adelaide Strikers were ranked fourth in the table at the conclusion of the group games and they breezed past the Perth Scorchers in the Knockout where Lloyd Pope and Cameron Boyce combined for some leg-spin magic.
But come the Challenger, the Adelaide Strikers ran into Josh Brown playing the innings of his life, having scored 140(57) as the Brisbane Heat ran up 214/7 on the board, as McSweeney chipped in with a 33 and took 3-3 in the space of five balls. Ending the Adelaide Strikers hopes of going on and winning just their second BBL title.
What went right for the Adelaide Strikers?
The Adelaide Strikers were the leading run-scorers of BBL|13 and the best batting side in the competition by far, they managed to average 31.91 runs scored for each wicket lost, paired with a high scoring season, where they averaged 8.67 runs an over, the only team to average 8+ runs every over.
Their batting stood out in the Powerplay where they averaged 52.5 and struck at 130.43, the highest amongst all the teams, similarly they excelled in the middle overs as well, averaging 41.81 and striking at 147.81 during this phase.
Their take down of pacers was brilliant to watch, as the Strikers combined to average 30.67 and strike at 153.14 against them through the season, their stand out batters being Matt Short and Chris Lynn who struck at 171.5 and 186.99 respectively against pacers.
Jake Weatherald, Jamie Overton, Adam Hose and Harry Nielsen all chipped in with strike rates above 150 against the pacers and balls per boundaries scored being under 5 against them.
Spin formed a critical part of their pace attack, with Cameron Boyce picking up 14 wickets at an economy of 6.92, striking once every 18.14 balls. Lloyd Pope was not far behind with 13 wickets, with an economy of 8.81, striking once every 9.69 balls!
Jamie Overton chipped in with the bat, but his most impressive performance came with the white Kookaburra in his hand, picking up 16 wickets at an average of 17.31, economy of 8.07 as he struck once every 12.88 balls!
What went wrong for the Strikers?
The largest let-down for the Adelaide Strikers was their pace bowling unit, impressive in the powerplay, averaging 21.19 with an economy of 8.27, their returns diminished in the Middle Overs as they averaged 51.38 and conceded 9.13 an over.
David Payne picked up 12 wickets, but he had an economy of 9.37, while Thornton, Bazley, Agar and Doggett were ineffective, with the latter three conceding more than 10 runs an over.
In the death overs, their pace attack undid all the good work their spinners did, conceding at 12.03 an over, denting their bowling performance significantly.
Their pace attack as a whole conceded runs at 9.66 runs an over for the season and averaged 28.27!
Playing spin was another point of contention for the Strikers, while seven batters struck at over 150 against pace, only one, Jake Weatherald managed to do it against spin.
Weatherald averaged 52 and struck at 189 against the type, with their next best being Matt Short who struck at just 127.4!
Their overall batting performance against spin reads a strike rate of just 129.89, with teams using spin to choke the strikers, especially in the powerplay where they struck at 118.84 against spin and at the death where they struck at 124.49 against it.
How did the Adelaide Strikers go about fixing it?
The Strikers began by recruiting Alex Ross from the Sydney Thunder, a player known for his ability to play spin and often called the ‘sweepologist’, Ross will help, but his strike rate of 127 against spin in the Middle Overs does not inspire much confidence.
Ollie Pope solves two issues for them, Pope can keep allowing them to bench Nielsen and Pope strikes at 123 vs spin, which still leaves the susceptible to spin, but his strike rate against pace bowlers is 141 which could make up for it!
They drafted Fabian Allen to play the role of a specialist finisher/pinch hitter, who has demonstrated his ability to take down bowlers with a strike rate of 165.4 at the death overs making him a highly destructive option.
The Adelaide Strikers though, did miss out on recruiting someone who could handle spin well coming into this tournament and may have to look at utilising Jake Weatherald in a better role that would allow them to dominate the spin bowling a bit more.
They also chose not to reinforce their pace bowling stocks and even traded Wes Agar out for a draft pick, they signed on Jordan Buckingham who has impressed for South Australia with the red ball, an exciting player, he may be their answer to the pace problems!
Players to watch out for!
Lloyd Pope: Pope comes into the BBL on the back of 39 wickets at 24.33 in the current season of grade cricket, having taken 4-11(4) in his only T20 played.
Cameron Boyce: Boyce heads into the BBL season with nine wickets in nine T20 games, at an average of 23.56 and an economy of just 6.06!
James Bazley: The all-rounder may be critical to the Strikers’ hope of pushing for the title and he comes in fine form, averaging 45.56, striking at 155.3 with 3 fifties in 14 games and 16 wickets at an average of 21, with an economy of 6.52.
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