Sydney Sixers ready to defend Big Bash League title without big players

The likes of Steve Smith had helped the Sixers to win the BBL last season but this year owing to the hectic international schedule, the participation of such big players remains doubtful

Sydney Sixers coach Greg Shipperd has said that the side is ready to defend their Big Bash League (BBL) title this year without big players being a part of their squad.

The likes of Steve Smith had helped the Sydney Sixers during the 2019-20 season to win the BBL.It is unlikely that players such as Smith would be a part of the squad this year due to the hectic international schedule.

When the BBL gets kickstarted, Australia would be playing a four-match Test series against India. After that, Australia is slated to play the ODI series against India and New Zealand.

"I would have thought, looking at the international program right through January, that those all-form players are not going to be available. There`s a consistent conversation about how to get them involved but it`s a pretty unique year and everyone will be scrambling to provide enough good-quality international cricket," cricket.com.au quoted Shipperd as saying.

"Despite us absolutely wanting to have them involved, we understand this year that`s unlikely to be the case. But let`s keep our minds open to looking for gaps in the program in future years to have them involved," he added.

With the big names not being part of the Sixers squad, the bench strength of the side would be tested, however, Shipperd is not worried about going in with a reasonably young side.

"For us it was about having 18 members in the squad ready to play. We had big player churn for various reasons across the course of the season," Shipperd said.

"It certainly didn`t hurt that we had Lyon and Hazlewood come back into the group and have some big-pressure and big-time players back. Steve Smith was a wonderful addition to the group too. We ticked the list management box which is really important," he concluded.

The Big Bash League is slated to commence from December 3 this year and Sixers would face Hobart Hurricanes in their first match of the tournament. The match between Sixers and Hurricanes will be played on December 4 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Sydney Sixers squad : Sean Abbott, Jackson Bird, Tom Curran (OS), Ben Dwarshuis, Jack Edwards, Moises Henriques, Daniel Hughes, Nathan Lyon, Stephen O`Keefe, Josh Philippe, Lloyd Pope, Jordan Silk.