Big Bash spinners ran riot on the same day Australia left one out of their XI in an SCG Test for the first time in 138 years
At a time when much is being made about the future of spin bowling in Australia, one of the country’s most traditionally pace-friendly cities appears to be bucking the trend – at least in the Big Bash.
The Scorchers and Strikers sent down a combined 25 overs of spin during last night’s KFC BBL|15 clash, a record for a T20 match (international or domestic) at Optus Stadium.
The 11 wickets the two sides’ spinners shared was also a new benchmark for a T20 match at the venue, eclipsing the 10 taken during Adelaide’s upset win in the BBL|13 Knockout final led by their leg-spinning pair Lloyd Pope and Cameron Boyce who claimed seven of those between them.
Pope was again the best of the bowlers last night with 4-23, combining with South African spinner Tabraiz Shamsi who claimed 3-30, including the big wickets of Mitch Marsh, Cooper Connolly and Ashton Turner to cap a sensational BBL debut, to restrict Perth to 8-153 from their 20 overs.
Most spin overs bowled at Optus Stadium (T20 match)
Overs
Teams
Wickets taken
Season
25.0
Scorchers v Strikers
11
BBL|15
20.0
Hurricanes v Thunder
9
BBL|10
17.2
Scorchers v Strikers
10
BBL|13
17.0
Scorchers v Strikers
5
BBL|12
16.2
Scorchers v Strikers
5
BBL|14
Finger-spinning allrounders Matt Short and Jerrssis Wadia also bowled their full allotment of four overs as the Strikers sent down 16 consecutive overs of spin from the fifth over onwards.
In response, Connolly (1-31) opened the bowling for the Scorchers, while skipper Turner (2-1) broke the game open with back-to-back breakthroughs in the sixth over to remove Short (31) and Jason Sangha for a duck and halt the Strikers’ fast start.
Ashton Agar also collected 1-21 and operated at an economy rate of less than a run-a-ball for his four overs.
“With our bowling, we had to think on our feet,” left-arm quick Joel Paris said after taking three wickets to help clinch a 33-run win for the Scorchers.
“‘AT’ (Turner) is very good at that; he goes with the flow and plays what’s in front of him and it was a handy over from him, his two wickets got us going.
“Once Cooper, (Agar) and AT settled in, I thought it was feet up for the rest of the night and spin to win.
“But they got us going and the rest of the pace (bowlers) just contributed well and jumped on board.
“I still think pace does have a big influence here but on a night like tonight where clearly spin was having such a big impact, we needed to run with that.”
But spin’s impact in Perth is far from an anomaly, with the slower bowlers responsible for more wickets (53) at Optus Stadium than any other BBL venue over the past three seasons.
Since the start of BBL|13, only Manuka Oval (16.2 balls per wicket) has eclipsed Optus Stadium (18.4) as the ground (to host matches this season) where spinners have struck most frequently in the competition.
Perth has also been the most productive Australian ground for spinners in men’s Test cricket since the 2022-23 summer, with its 18 per cent of wickets falling to spin the highest of the five Test venues.
Shamsi, who was initially due to arrive after the Strikers’ next game against Sydney Thunder on Tuesday, indicated his earlier introduction into the tournament was part of a plan to exploit the conditions at Optus Stadium.
The left-arm wrist spinner, who finished a stint with Gulf Giants in the UAE on December 28, recently won a landmark High Court decision in South Africa that enabled him to complete the ILT20 season and play in the BBL.
“I got the call at the last minute, got into Perth (on Saturday) night and here I was a few hours later on the field,” he said.
“That’s why I got the surprise call.
“I was only supposed to join later and they said, ‘Listen you’ve got to get to Perth, we’re going to bowl more spin’.
“It did work out, and maybe teams coming here in the future may change their plans as well, because being from South Africa I’ve always known Perth as pace and bounce, you play your fast bowlers.
“So good planning from our management.
“Not a great result for us but it was nice to be out there and get the first game over the line … the Big Bash, I’ve always wanted to be part of it.”
It wasn’t just in Perth where spinners played a crucial role in the BBL on the same day Australia left one out of their XI for an SCG Test for the first time in 138 years.
Young Renegades left-arm wrist spinner Callum Stow took two wickets at the MCG, where Australia also didn’t play a spinner in the last Test match. Stars leggie Mitch Swepson then removed top scorer Josh Brown during an economical four-over spell to keep his side in the match before ‘Gades skipper Will Sutherland clinched the Melbourne derby with a six off the second last ball.
“I’m obviously biased, but I think we’ve seen it coming in Sheffield Shield cricket,” said four-Test spinner Swepson.
“We see less and less spin bowlers coming into the game, particularly in certain parts of the country, and that’s what we’re now seeing a little bit with the Test arena.
“We’re seeing greener wickets and seam being the main source of wickets, and it’s such a shame because there’s definitely a spot for spin bowling in Test cricket.
“I grew up watching Shane Warne bowl around the wicket into pizzas at the SCG and Stuart MacGill ragging them sideways.
“It would be nice to bring that back, but with the way it’s going at the moment, it looks like we’re going further and further away from that with the wickets that we’re producing.”
– with AAP
KFC BBL|15 standings
Team
Matches played
M
Wins
W
Losses
L
Ties
T
No results
N/R
Net Run Rate
NRR
Deductions
Ded.
Total points
PTS
1
HUR
7
5
2
0
0
0.187
0
10
2
SCO
6
4
2
0
0
1.32
0
8
3
STA
6
4
2
0
0
1.091
0
8
4
HEA
6
3
3
0
0
-0.786
0
6
5
SIX
5
2
3
0
0
0.202
0
4
6
STR
5
2
3
0
0
-0.045
0
4
7
REN
5
2
3
0
0
-0.636
0
4
8
THU
6
1
5
0
0
-1.429
0
2
Legend
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points
