Big Bash League: Perth Scorchers seamer Joel Paris says bowlers delighted to back up power-packed batting unit

It’s the power-packed line-up which will have opposition sides quaking in their boots. Perth Scorchers are likely to be without Josh Inglis for the early stages of their BBL campaign due to the wicketkeeper being part of the Australian Test squad — but they still boast a batting group which is capable of putting some huge totals on the board. Mitch Marsh is set to be more available for the club than he has been in recent years and the in-form Australian white-ball captain will form a salivating opening partnership with New Zealander Finn Allen. Behind them will come a pair of all-rounders with a penchant for contributing with the bat in last season’s player of the tournament Cooper Connolly and Aaron Hardie, the leading run-scorer in the 2022-23 edition of the competition. The Scorchers also boast plenty of middle-order firepower in cool-headed captain Ashton Turner, popular Englishman Laurie Evans — who is back with the club after a brief stint with Melbourne Renegades — and Nick Hobson, an accountant who moonlights as a T20 finisher in tournaments around the world. Fast bowler Joel Paris said the Scorchers’ bowling unit would draw great confidence from having the aggressive group of batters on their side. “What we’ve done is create a group which can put pressure on the (opposition) bowling group really quickly and hopefully throughout the whole 20 overs,” Paris said. “It’s what fans like to see, the ball crossing the boundary, and that’ll be the aim of what we’re trying to do this year. “Having access to Mitch, hopefully, for a whole season will be amazing. He’s a Perth boy, he’s captained this side before, he’s the heart and soul of the group, so we are, as a playing group, super excited to have him back. He’s excited too. “As a bowling group, it’s our job to either try and restrict them (the opposition), and hopefully the batting group can chase down whatever we give them, or if our job is to defend, hopefully we’ve got some big totals on the board.” A stalwart in a golden era for WA in domestic cricket, Paris has split his last four BBL campaigns between Hobart Hurricanes and Melbourne Stars, but has returned to his hometown Scorchers and is set to pull on the orange for the first time since 2021. The swing bowler has been earmarked to fill the void left by the defection of fellow left-armer Jason Behrendorff to Melbourne Renegades, but he said he was prepared to fill a a variety of different roles. “Jase has done an amazing role for the Scorchers for his whole career, so he’ll be sorely missed,” he said. “It’s probably going to be a little bit of a different look to what we had in the past, but what we’ve tried to do over the last couple of days, and we’ve got a few more days prep before the first game, is to make sure that we cover all bases and we can be ready for everything. “It is a young (bowling) group, for sure, but at the same time, it’s very, very exciting.” Perth will open their campaign against Sydney Sixers on Sunday at Optus Stadium and will look to start their campaign in winning fashion against the star-studded visitors, who boast one of the world’s best white-ball batters in Pakistan’s Babar Azam. With the club hoping for a crowd of more than 35,000 for their season opener, Paris said he was happy to be back with the home side, rather than in an opposing team’s camp. “We have an amazing turnout here; everyone gives such a great support network for the Scorchers, and this year will be no different,” he said. “It’s obviously strange being back in Perth at this time of the year, having been away for four or five years, but I’m super excited.” Allen said the Scorchers faithful provided an atmosphere which was “probably the closest it gets to international cricket in a (domestic) league”. “You’re always feeling the pressure of the noise, how hungry everyone is to perform and to do well and you want to win every game,” Allen said. “The fans are bloody passionate about it, and you jump on that as well. You can see day-to-day how passionate everyone is about Perth and they’re all local boys too, they’re all on multi-year deals, they all want to be here forever. “It’s cool to be a part of, and it’s a really infectious environment.”