Match Preview: What to Expect
As of January 15, Perth Scorchers are in the third position in the Big Bash League (BBL) table with 20 points from 9 games and Brisbane Heat are in the fifth position with 20 points from 10 matches.
Big Bash League Points Table
| TEAM | M | W | L | PT | NRR |
| SS | 10 | 7 | 3 | 29 | 0.555 |
| ST | 10 | 6 | 4 | 23 | 1.129 |
| PS | 9 | 5 | 3 | 20 | 0.903 |
| AS | 10 | 5 | 5 | 20 | 0.337 |
| BH | 10 | 5 | 5 | 20 | 0.175 |
| HH | 10 | 5 | 5 | 19 | -0.229 |
| MS | 9 | 3 | 5 | 16 | -0.438 |
| MR | 10 | 2 | 8 | 9 | -2.349 |
Perth Scorchers vs Brisbane Heat in match 44 is thus a key game as both teams are well alive in the race for playoff spots. In the head to head games of Brisbane Heat vs Perth Scorchers this year, the Scorchers have won both encounters.
On January 1, Scorchers triumphed by 40 runs. In that match, Perth won the toss, batted first, and notched up 149/6. The main contributors were no. 3 Cameron Bancroft with 50 off 42 balls and opener Josh Inglis with 27 off 19, and skipper Mitchell Marsh with 26 off 19.
For the heat, Zahir Khan bowled economically, returning figures of 2/18 in his four overs. He was supported by Ben Cutting with 1/20 in three overs.
The Scorchers then bundled out the Heat for just 109 in 18.4 overs. Ironically, the top scorer for the Heat was no. 11 Zahir Khan with 19 not out in 10 balls. Fawad Ahmed claimed 3/16 for the Scorchers and he was backed well by Matthew Kelly and Ashton Agar who bagged 2 wickets each.
Fawad Ahmed was named player of the match. Scorchers bagged 2 points while the Heat went pointless.
In the January 11 encounter, the Scorchers won by 34 runs. They batted first and amassed 213/3 thanks to skipper Mitchell Marsh’s belligerent 93 not out off 41 balls with 3 fours and 8 sixes and Cameron Bancroft’s 41 not out off 29 balls with three sixes.
Ben Cutting was the most economical bowler for the Heat with 0/26 in his four overs. The Scorchers then restricted the Heat to 179/8. Opener Tom Banton was the chief contributor for the Heat with 55 off 32 balls. For the Scorchers, Jhye Richardson, Joel Paris, and Chris Jordan grabbed 2 scalps each.
Mitchell March was declared player of the match. The Scorchers got 2 points and the Heat nil.
For the Scorchers, the key batsman in the January 19 clash with the Heat will be Colin Munro who has slammed 237 runs in 8 games at 29.63 average and 130.94 strike rate. Jhye Richardson has been the top bowler for the Scorchers this year with 19 scalps in 10 matches with 6.17 economy rate and 10.95 strike rate.
For the Heat, skipper Chris Lynn has led from the front, smashing 273 runs in 6 games at 45.50 average and 145.99 strike rate. Mark Steketee has been the top bowler for the Brisbane team, claiming 18 wickets in 9 matches with 8.52 economy rate and 12.86 strike rate.