Thunder intends to stop the rot

CRICKET: Sydney Thunder batsman Callum Ferguson believes tonight’s clash at home against the Perth Scorchers is the perfect chance to reignite his team’s season following consecutive losses.

The Thunder have dropped their standards after two impressive wins to start theseason.

Ferguson isn’t hitting the panic button but believes the showdown with the Scorchers at Spotless Stadium has come at the right time.

“We’ll go into the game with a lot of confidence,” Ferguson said yesterday. “We still feel like we are playing really good cricket, there have just been a few little periods in matches that have hurt us.

“The game in Hobart could have gone either way down the stretch, so we are getting better at getting into positions where we can win games and we are doing it consistently.

“We’ve got a really strong squad and we believe in our talent. We feel like we’ve got a really well balanced team and the way we’ve played this season, we will go in with a lot of confidence that we can get the job done.”

Before the BBL action starts at 7.15pm (AEST), the WBBL Sydney Smash will take centre stage from 2.50pm.

After consecutive narrow losses to the Scorchers at Lilac Hill before the new year, the Thunder has made one change to their WBBL squad for the grudge match against the league-leading Sixers.

Hannah Darlington comes into the squad to replace Rene Farrell.

“We’ve played one game against them (Sixers) already and lost so I know the girls want to get one back, ” Thunder coach Joanne Broadbent said. “Out of all the teams I suppose the Sixers are the team that we know the most, so we’ll be looking for some good performances against them.”