Big Bash League Cricket Betting Preview: Stars Enter BBL as the Odds Favorites

The sixth edition of the Big Bash League (BBL) kicks off Tuesday, Dec. 20 in the west of Sydney when last season's champions, the Sydney Thunder, host their cross-town rivals, the Sydney Sixers, at Spotless Stadium.

Each team will play a total of eight matches before the top four teams enter elimination semi-finals, after which the winners will progress to the final on Jan. 28.

Each club has a salary cap and has spent the offseason trying to make use of every last dollar. The betting market points towards an extremely competitive season according to AustralianGambling.com.au, with several teams given a chance.

Speaking of making the most of the salary cap, after losing last season's semi-final to the Melbourne Stars, the Perth Scorchers went on an aggressive recruiting campaign that yielded perhaps the best Australian fast bowler in the past decade, Mitchell Johnson, for the club.

Joining him is a man who'll be happy that Johnson is now a teammate, Englishman Ian Bell. The third key signing for the team from the West came with 24-year-old all-rounder Hilton Cartwright, who was also named last week in the Australian ODI team and could be a real X-factor for the team this season.

The Perth outfit are the most successful team in the history of the BBL and but are just $6.50 second favorites to win their third title at the sportsbooks.

Last season's runners-up, the Stars, are at $5 to win their first-ever title. Unlike the Scorchers, the Stars have had a quiet offseason when it comes to recruiting, and with the most stable list in the competition there's been little news out of the MCG-based club this offseason.

David Hussey will carry on as skipper this season after the Stars lost last year's final to the Thunder.

Overseas player Kevin Pietersen is second favorite at $9 to be the league's top run-scorer, but his compatriot Luke Wright may be a better bet at $15 as Pietersen is set to miss the opening match to be with his family for Christmas.

Staying in Melbourne and sitting tied on the second line of betting at $6.50 are the Melbourne Renegades.

Joining the club will be the ninth-ranked Twenty20 bowler on the International Cricket Council charts, Sunil Narine. The off spinner will return for his second stint in the tournament, having played five matches for the Sixers in BBL|02. Narine is second favorite at $10 for most tournament wickets.

In a blow to not just Andrew McDonald's side but the whole league, one of the biggest hitters and brightest stars of world cricket, West Indian Chris Gayle, will not play for the Melbourne club this season. With Gayle gone, plenty of pressure will fall on the skipper, Australian international Aaron Finch.

Despite losing several key players in the offseason, the Thunder are still given a chance by the oddsmakers at $7 for back-to-back titles.

Last season's captain Mike Hussey will not be there this season. Joining him in retirement is one of the best all-rounders of all time, Jacques Kallis. Filling Hussey's shoes will be Shane Watson, who will captain the side this season. Usman Khawaja will have a smaller role to play now that he is a permanent fixture in the Australian Test XI.

The Thunder's cross-town rivals, the Sixers, have had to be aggressive in recruiting as they managed only two wins last season and finished with the wooden spoon.

That aggressive campaign has seen two new international signings join the club, with explosive young openers Jason Roy and Sam Billings coming on board. The latter of which served as Brad Haddin's understudy early in 2016 at the Pakistan Super League.

The third key signing who'll be in magenta this summer is fast bowler Joe Mennie ($67 for most wickets) who made his Test debut for Australia last month in Hobart. The Sixers are rated an $8 chance.

The Adelaide Strikers were last season's minor premiers but couldn't get it done in the semi-final, easily brushed aside by a Khawaja-led Sydney Thunder. It's been a long offseason for the Strikers who are also rated an $8 chance to win their first title.

If they are to do that, a rejuvenated Kieron Pollard will have a big role to play. The big West Indian will be back for the Strikers this summer in news that is sure to warm the hearts of Adelaide fans.

A player not likely to warm too many hearts, certainly not anyone outside of Hobart anyway, is Englishman Stuart Broad. Having signed to play for the Hobart Hurricanes, the fast bowler is rated a $26 chance for most tournament wickets. This may be worth a nibble as the conditions down south should suit him.

His club is a longer shot to win the title at $9 but will be hoping to improve on its poor showing last season.

Another overseas player who'll be back in the Apple Isle for his second season is Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara. He's good value at $18 to top the league's most runs column.

The Brisbane Heat come in at $10 to win their second BBL title. The Heat won only three games last season but it wasn't any fault of their skipper Chris Lynn. He's at $8 to score the most runs this year after being named player of the tournament last season, scoring 378 runs off just 218 deliveries (a strike rate of 173.4), with 23 fours and 27 sixes in total.

The club will also be boosted by the domestic ODI cup player of the tournament, Marnus Labuschagne.