Batting concerns for Hurricanes in maiden CLT20

Hobart Hurricanes have ironically reached their first Champions League Twenty20 tournament in a year when they won their fewest BBL group matches. In 2011-12, the Hurricanes won five games and finished in second place, but lost the semi-final. In 2012-13, they won four games and finished in sixth position. But the unbalanced nature of the points table this year, with the Melbourne Stars unbeaten, meant that three victories were enough for the Hurricanes to scrape into fourth position on the league table this year.

The Hurricanes were the least-fancied of the final four teams in the BBL and faced the undefeated Stars at the MCG in their semi-final. At the same venue a fortnight earlier, the Stars had wrapped up a five-wicket win over the Hurricanes. But when knockout time came, the Stars stumbled against Hurricanes' bowlers. The legspinner Cameron Boyce was especially important and took 3 for 11 from three overs to restrict the Stars to 8 for 141, which the Hurricanes chased down through Ben Dunk, Tim Paine and George Bailey. The upset result catapulted the Hurricanes into the final - where they lost to Perth Scorchers - and into the Champions League.

Dunk and Paine were their leading run-scorers throughout the BBL, while seamer Ben Laughlin was their highest wicket-taker. Spinners Boyce and Shoaib Malik collected 18 wickets between them and will be important in the turning conditions in India. However, the absence of their leader Bailey, who will instead be playing for Kings XI Punjab, will hurt.

Dunk was the leading run-scorer in the BBL with 395 runs at 43.88 and Paine was the competition's seventh-highest scorer. They are expected to open for the Hurricanes and have proven themselves capable of providing strong starts. Boyce, Malik and Xavier Doherty have the potential to be an important spin trio on helpful pitches, while Doug Bollinger and Ben Hilfenhaus provide plenty of pace-bowling experience.

Without Bailey, the Hurricanes middle-order looks thin. Travis Birt and Aiden Blizzard are journeyman batsmen whose striking power is impressive but consistency less so. Batsmen Dom Michael and Jon Wells, and allrounders Malik and Evan Gulbis will need to be at their best to ensure it is not all left to Dunk and Paine.

Twenty20 can be a scary prospect for legspinners trying to find their way in the game, but Cameron Boyce enjoyed being part of the BBL last summer. He claimed 10 wickets at 14.00 and was the leading spinner in the competition, earning a call-up into Australia's squad for their upcoming T20 against Pakistan in the UAE. In the Indian conditions, Boyce could be an important weapon.

Sam Rainbird will make his Twenty20 debut if he gets a match at the Champions League, but he has already attracted attention in the other forms of the game. A left-arm fast bowler, Rainbird was named by national selector Rod Marsh this week as one of two young players - the other being New South Wales allrounder Sean Abbott - whose progress particularly impressed the selection panel over the past year. How he handles T20 cricket remains to be seen.

Hurricanes will make their first appearance in the Champions League T20 tournament