Perth Scorchers vs. Brisbane Heat – Big Bash League, February 4, 2021

Following a lackluster Qualifier defeat to the Sydney Sixers, the Perth Scorchers have another chance to reach the BBL 10 Final on Thursday, February 4, as they face the Brisbane Heat in the Challenger.

The Heat have already come through two playoff rounds to reach the last four, claiming an Eliminator win over the Adelaide Strikers before seeing off the Sydney Thunder in the Knockout.

Can the Heat build on their momentum? Or will the Scorchers’ superiority shine through? I assess the betting odds and share my Perth Scorchers vs. Brisbane Heat prediction and pick.

I don’t think anyone can argue that the Scorchers (1.62) don’t deserve the favorite tag here. After all, Adam Voges’ side has undoubtedly been one of the strongest teams this season.

Having said that, it feels like the momentum is with the Heat (2.15) right now. 10bet views the Queenslanders as the outsiders, but you simply can’t write them off.

The Scorchers headed into the playoffs, having won eight of their final ten games. Everybody was expecting them to give the Sixers a run for their money in the Qualifier, but that didn’t end up happening.

English openers Jason Roy (3) and Liam Livingstone (15) fell early, with Josh Inglis (69), Ashton Turner (33), and Colin Munro (30) steadying the ship in the middle order. But it always felt like 167/6 was a chaseable target for the Sixers.

As it turned out, the defending champions got the job done with ease.

Part-time spinner Livingstone was the only Scorchers player to take a wicket, with an unbeaten 98 from James Vince taking the game away from the Western Australians. Leading wicket-taker Jhye Richardson went for 36 off his four overs, while Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye were also expensive.

I expected a lot more from Adam Voges’ men on Saturday. Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if they bounced back in style on Thursday.

Four HUGE wins in-a-row as we surge straight into the Challenger! Re-live last night's highlights here! ? #HeatWIN #BBLFinals#BringTheHEAT #BBL10 pic.twitter.com/FmkR1bMGub

— Brisbane Heat (@HeatBBL) January 31, 2021

Following an unpredictable start to the season, it feels like the Heat are peaking at just the right time. In fact, back-to-back knockout victories mean that Darren Lehmann’s men have won their last four games.

Jimmy Peirson (47*) was the hero as the Queenslanders beat the Strikers with seven balls to spare in the Eliminator. Marnus Labuschagne shone with the ball against Adelaide, finishing with figures of 3/13.

Last time out, Peirson smashed 43 not-out to sink the Thunder, although Sam Heazlett’s unbeaten 74 was arguably one of the innings of the tournament. Against the odds, the Heat crushed the Thunder with five balls remaining.

With scores of 6 and 10 since the playoffs got underway, I think that Chris Lynn still has a big knock in the locker. The all-time leading BBL run-scorer is yet to get going, yet he could easily fire the Heat to victory on Thursday.

Let’s not forget that Lynn has already scored a half-century against the Scorchers this year.

A couple of weeks ago, I would have been backing the Scorchers here. But following the Heat’s recent six-run victory over Voges’ side, I can see Lehamann’s men repeating their heroics on Thursday.

The manner with which the Scorchers collapsed against the Sixers was pretty astonishing. On the flip side, all the momentum is with the Heat at the moment. The Queenslanders have battled seriously hard in recent matches, and I’m confident that they can reach the Final.