Sydney Sixers captain Moises Henriques takes a shot at Thunder skipper David Warner ahead of derby showdown – and he is not happy about it
- Thunder won just one game last season
- Have been rebuilt with Warner as captain
- Rival skipper has achieved a shocking record
Moises Henriques has lit the fuse ahead of the first Sydney Smash of the BBL summer, claiming it will be ‘an easy two points’ when his Sydney Sixers face the Sydney Thunder.
The Thunder have won just two of the past 10 clashes between the local rivals. The last time they tasted victory in January 2021, they entered the new season as the reigning wooden spooners.
The Sixers, one of the league’s most enduringly successful teams, could have had a six-game winning streak against the Thunder if rain hadn’t wiped out one of last year’s matchups.
Asked if he had been around Saturday’s derby at the Sydney Showground when the draw was announced, Henriques shrugged.
“All the games are circled, but December 21, well, that’s normally just an easy two points for us, so I didn’t pay too much attention to that,” the veteran said.
Both the Sixers and Thunder bring winning form to what is expected to be a sellout match.
Sydney Sixers captain Moises Henriques has fired a brutal sledgehammer at David Warner and his Sydney Thunder ahead of the BBL showdown in the city
Henriques defeated the Sixers on Monday night in their first game of the tournament against the Melbourne Renegades
Warner didn’t take Henriques’ barb well, saying they needed to back up their “cockiness.”
Henriques blasted the Sixers home in their first match of the tournament against the Melbourne Renegades on Monday night, before Daniel Sams did the same for the Sydney Thunder against the Adelaide Strikers a day later.
It was an encouraging start for the Thunder, whose 19-year-old opener Sam Konstas became the BBL’s youngest ever half-centurion with 56 runs on debut.
During the first full BBL season of his career, former Test opener David Warner warned Henriques not to write off the Thunder too easily this time around.
“If they want to add cockiness to it, they have to support it, right?
‘We know it’s a good match. They have often reached the upper limit and are a well-structured and balanced team,” said Warner.
The Thunder’s only win last season was the fewest by any BBL club in a decade, but pacer Wes Agar, West Indies globetrotter Sherfane Rutherford and former England international Sam Billings topped a list of summer reinforcements.
Konstas, Rutherford and Billings are expected to improve the Thunder’s batting prospects after only one player – Alex Hales – cracked the BBL’s top-15 points scorers last season.
“I think they have a good list,” Henriques said.
‘I expect them to compete for the final much more than last year.
“(The Sydney Smash) will be a huge game for us. We play them twice, so being good in those two games will be a big part of whether we are successful or not.”