Big Bash League: Injured Perth Scorchers pair Ashton Agar and Joel Paris to fight for a place in final

The door has been left open for injured pair Ashton Agar and Joel Paris to return in time for Sunday’s Big Bash League final. The bowlers will be put through their paces across the next three days before the final, but coach Adam Voges would not rule them out of the blockbuster decider. Agar injured his right calf during the club’s January 4 win over Adelaide Strikers, while Paris came off with an injured groin in the final stages of the loss to Melbourne Renegades on January 7. The Scorchers won through to the ninth final in the club’s history and the sixth to be played in Perth by beating Sydney Sixers in The Qualifier on Tuesday. “Both of them are working towards trying to be available, and we will give them every opportunity,” Voges said of Agar and Paris. “We will see them go through their paces over the next couple of days, whether they get there or not, I’m not too sure at this stage. “But our medical staff are great, they will give them every opportunity, and we’ll see how they go. Voges revealed the decision to slide Cooper Connolly from his customary No.3 spot to No.5 against the Sixers was partly due to his ailing form with the bat and partly a match-up call, with the looming spectre of Mitchell Starc and the new ball. He said they are not wedded to Connolly batting at five and he could come back up the order for the final, although they are a chance to tackle Starc and the Sixers again. “We’re not fixed on it,” he said. “It was a mixture of a few things, we just felt that we wanted to throw something a little bit different at the Sixers, particularly with Mitch Starc at the top and his record to left-handers, so there was a little bit of that, there was a little bit of Aaron Hardie going really well at the moment and trying to get him up the order. “We’ve got five or six batters who are all playing pretty well at the moment who all want to face more balls and get up the order. “I think we’ll be pretty flexible come Sunday, we’ll wait and see who the opposition are and what we think is our best line-up.” The Scorchers made one selection change for The Qualifier, dropping Luke Holt for paceman Brody Couch and going in without a frontline spinner. The call was made based on their expectations on the pitch and that position in the side will be left live again until the Scorchers get a look at the wicket for the final. The centre pitch of the wicket block will be used for the first time since the two-day Perth Test on Sunday. “It was very much how we looked at the wicket, there was a bit more live grass on it,” Voges said. “We felt there was going to be some pace and bounce in it and with Coop going so well with the ball at the moment, we felt that the extra pace option against the Sixers on that wicket was the way to go. “Again, we’ll weigh that up come Sunday, we’ll look at the conditions, we’ll look at the matchups for the opposition and make the decision accordingly.” Voges confirmed wicketkeeper Joel Curtis had broken his hand, but is expected to be available for the first Sheffield Shield match of the second half of the season.