Image: Hobart Hurricanes vs Sydney Thunder / © X (Twitter)
Looking at their recent performances, the Hobar Hurricanes come into this tournament as the current champions and seem to be comfortable defending their title. Their recruiting has been an integral part of the success of the Hobart Hurricanes over the past few years. The Hobart Hurricanes have again put together a solid squad with the necessary mix of experience and youth.
The Sydney Thunder also had a strong year in the 2025 BBL season, finishing with the most wins of any team (five out of ten), but were eliminated from the Final by the Hobart Hurricanes by seven wickets. Since they lost to the Hobart Hurricanes, the Sydney Thunder sees this game as an opportunity for revenge, and if they win their first match of the season, it should give them a huge boost in confidence.
Once again, Hobart Hurricanes will be relying heavily upon their strong all-round team, especially their strong bowling attack, as this was a major contributing factor to their championship victory last season. By playing at Bellerive Oval, the Hobart Hurricanes gain a competitive advantage as historically, the pitch is favourable for fast bowlers early on and turns true for batting later. Their ability to adjust to different twitch conditions and have strong control over the middle overs is what has made the Hurricanes one of the most successful teams in recent BBL seasons.
Whereas Hobart has an established track record of excellence, as the defending champions, they will aim to assert their dominance from the outset in their first match of the upcoming BBL season. Similarly, the Sydney Thunder will view this fixture as an opportunity to prove themselves right away after a disappointing knockout round loss during last season’s playoffs. A quick beginning to the tournament can prove to be important momentum for teams, so it will be vital that both clubs perform well in this opening match as they start their new BBL 2025-26 campaign.
The Sydney Thunder’s failure in last year’s elimination games is a priority for them moving into this season. Last season, they had a strong finish to the regular season; however, they were unable to perform under pressure in the knockout rounds. The first match of the season provides the Thunder with an opportunity to reverse last year’s script. The Thunder have an aggressive batting lineup and will try to utilise their multiple types of bowlers to exploit the conditions in Hobart.