Once the laughing stock of the competition, the Thunder surged to their first ever title to deliver retiring skipper Mike Hussey a fitting end to an outstanding career.

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Kurtis Patterson was close to Test selection and will be called upon to really step up following the retirement of Jacques Kallis and the limited availability of Usman Khawaja, who anchored successful run chases in both the semi and final and was close to being the player of the tournament.

Bowling-wise, the Thunder appear to have one of the better attacks in the competition with Clint McKay a very savvy operator at either end of the innings and Pat Cummins a potent new ball threat to go with the spin of Chris Green.

Freakish West Indian Andre Russell gives the champions an X-Factor in all three facets of the game that not many other teams can call upon.

The Scorchers have shown that defending your crown is possible and while the Thunder have lost a wealth of experience, there’s more of a resilience about their set-up these days.

Unibet Odds: 7.50

Last Season: 1st

Prediction: 3rd