Big Bash League: The ultimate BBL guide ahead of season 14 getting underway

The Big Bash season gets underway on Sunday and it’s shaping up as one of the biggest ever, with international superstars, power blasters and stump destroyers everywhere. Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the first match. Adelaide Strikers BBL 13 position: 4th Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Fabian Allen (West Indies), James Bazley, Cameron Boyce, Jordan Buckingham, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Travis Head, Thomas Kelly, Chris Lynn, Harry Nielsen, Jamie Overton (England), Lloyd Pope, Ollie Pope (England), Alex Ross, D’Arcy Short, Matt Short, Henry Thornton, Jake Weatherald Player to watch: Ollie Pope - The Englishman will miss the start of the tournament but once he arrives he will offer the Strikers versatility in spades, capable of being a power hitter and anchoring an innings A big chunk of Adelaide’s star power is tied up in the Test unit, and they will rely heavily on their international players to do the lifting. If Chris Lynn and D’Arcy Short can find their best, they will be competitive, and Matt Short is going to need another blistering campaign. Predicted finish: 7th Brisbane Heat BBL 13 position: Champions Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Tom Alsop (England), Xavier Bartlett, Max Bryant, Spencer Johnson, Usman Khawaja, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan McSweeney, Colin Munro (New Zealand), Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Will Prestwidge, Matthew Renshaw, Mitchell Swepson, Callum Vidler, Paul Walter (England), Jack Wildermuth, Jack Wood Player to watch: Spencer Johnson - The fiery left-armer will be the centerpiece of Brisbane’s attack and will be given the new ball to take early wickets with his rapid swing. The champions will have a tough title defence on their hands and don’t boast the star power of some of the other teams. However, their domestic core is tight and Colin Munro flourishes on bouncy wickets like those at the Gabba. Young quick Callum Vidler is also an intriguing addition to their bowling stocks. Predicted finish: 5th Hobart Hurricanes BBL 13 ladder position: 5th Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Iain Carlisle, Nikhil Chaudhary, Tim David, Paddy Dooley, Jake Doran, Nathan Ellis, Peter Hatzoglou, Shai Hope (West Indies), Caleb Jewell, Chris Jordan (England), Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Mitch Owen, Waqar Salamkheil (Afghanistan), Billy Stanlake, Matthew Wade, Charlie Wakim, Mac Wright Player to watch: Tim David - Australia’s late-innings destroyer has been in intimidating form over the last 12 months and holds the key to the Hurricanes posting competitive totals. The Hurricanes boast one of the better bowling units this season, with Chris Jordan, Riley Meredith, Billy Stanlake, and Peter Hatzoglou, and they will be hopeful of rolling sides for low totals or at least preventing scores above 180. They also have a strong top-order in Shai Hope, Ben McDermott, Caleb Jewell and Matthew Wade, who have all proven damaging in the past - Hope with West Indies - with Tim David and Mitch Owen to finish. Predicted finish: 2nd Melbourne Renegades BBL 13 position: 7th Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Jacob Bethell (England), Josh Brown, Xavier Crone, Harry Dixon, Laurie Evans (England), Jake Fraser-McGurk, Marcus Harris, Mackenzie Harvey, Nathan Lyon, Fergus O’Neill, Kane Richardson, Tom Rogers, Gurinder Sandhu, Tim Seifert (New Zealand), Will Sutherland, Jon Wells, Adam Zampa. Signed replacement player: Hassan Khan (USA/Pakistan) Player to watch: Laurie Evans - The Perth Scorchers couldn’t keep their man and the Englishman is set to light up the Renegades middle-order after regular match-winning knocks in Perth. The Renegades will be desperate to improve on finishing second last in BBL13 and have assembled a power-packed batting unit. Josh Brown and Jake Fraser-McGurk will make a no-holds-barred opening partnership followed up by the flair of Englishmen Jacob Bethell and Laurie Evans. However, they may need their batters to fire in every game as their bowling lacks depth despite Kane Richardson and Adam Zampa at the helm. Predicted finish: 3rd Melbourne Stars BBL 13 ladder position: 6th Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Scott Boland, Hilton Cartwright, Brody Couch, Tom Curran (England), Ben Duckett (England), Sam Harper, Campbell Kellaway, Glenn Maxwell, Hamish McKenzie, Jon Merlo, Usama Mir (Pakistan), Joel Paris, Tom Rogers, Peter Siddle, Mark Steketee, Marcus Stoinis, Doug Warren, Beau Webster. Signed replacement players: Joe Clarke (England), Adam Milne (New Zealand) Player to watch: Ben Duckett - Australia’s Ashes foe loves belting the ball in Test cricket and reaches new heights in the shortest format against the new ball. Is this the year of the Stars? As their name suggests, they have plenty of them, with Glenn Maxwell and skipper Marcus Stoinis leading the line, but they need to find a way to meld it all together. Their bowling looks strong but shows its age, with Peter Siddle at 40, Joel Paris at 32, and Mark Steketee at 30. Predicted finish: 1st Perth Scorchers BBL 13 ladder position: 3rd Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Ashton Agar, Finn Allen (New Zealand), Mahli Beardman, Jason Behrendorff, Cooper Connolly, Sam Fanning, Aaron Hardie, Nick Hobson, Matthew Hurst (England), Josh Inglis, Keaton Jennings (England), Matt Kelly, Mitch Marsh, Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, Matthew Spoors, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye Player to watch: Finn Allen - The Scorchers locked away the Kiwi star ahead of the draft and Allen proved a match-winner opening for his country during the T20 World Cup in Australia in 2022. Perth will need to overcome an injury crisis to start the tournament, but the last time they did that, they were crowned back-to-back champions in an epic. Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson, Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye will always give Perth a chance, but their batting order could look very different this season with plenty of new and young faces, such as Sam Fanning and Englishman Matthew Hurst. Predicted finish: 4th Sydney Sixers BBL 13 position: Runners-up Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird, Jafer Chohan (England), Joel Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques, Akeal Hosein (West Indies), Daniel Hughes, Hayden Kerr, Ben Manenti, Todd Murphy, Kurtis Patterson, Mitch Perry, Josh Philippe, Jordan Silk, Steve Smith, James Vince (England) Player to watch: James Vince - The Englishman has become a core member of the side who can do damage with the bat anywhere from one to five. The Sixers always find a way to be competitive and have kept a stable group from last season’s run to the final. But on paper, they don’t look like they’ll have the firepower to reign the star-filled squads in. The SCG is a big advantage for the side with low, slow pitches that will suit Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird and Todd Murphy. Predicted finish: 6th Sydney Thunder BBL 13 ladder position: 8th Squad (Bold indicates internationals): Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Sam Billings (England), Ollie Davies, Lockie Ferguson (New Zealand), Matthew Gilkes, Chris Green, Ryan Hadley, Liam Hatcher, Sam Konstas, Nic Maddinson, Nathan McAndrew, Sherfane Rutherford (West Indies), William Salzmann, Daniel Sams, Jason Sangha, Tanveer Sangha, David Warner Player to watch: David Warner - The divisive opener is set for his first full season of Big Bash cricket after retiring from Internationals and will be hoping to provide explosive starts. The Thunder have three strong internationals that will be entertaining match-winners alongside David Warner. However, their core of domestic players are often hit and miss but they have added some rising stars such as Sam Konstas. Nic Maddinson is also a great addition from rivals the Sixers. Predicted finish: 8th Predicted table 1. Melbourne Stars 2. Hobart Hurricanes 3. Melbourne Renegades 4. Perth Scorchers 5. Brisbane Heat 6. Sydney Sixers 7. Adelaide Strikers 8. Sydney Thunder