Preview: Tasmania v Queensland

Buoyed by their recent success over New South Wales in both Ryobi Cup and Bupa Sheffield Shield fixtures, the Tigers will be looking to defend their proud home record against the Bulls and can book themselves a place in their third consecutive one-day final with a win to finish the regular season.

The stakes are equally high for the Bulls who must win with a bonus point to sneak into the top two, but even then, they need a big swing in net run-rate to get past Tasmania.

Queensland is welcoming back key all-rounder James Hopes for the crunch match at Blundstone Arena following an injury lay-off that dates back to the early rounds of the KFC T20 Big Bash League.

Inexperienced duo Cameron Boyce and Matthew Gale have also been included in the Queensland squad at the expense of Brad Ipson and Chris Swan and may duel for 12th man duties on the day.

It's the potential impact of speedsters Ben Cutting and Alistair McDermott that looms as the key factor for the visitors, Cutting returning to form following injury and McDermott the leading wicket-taker in the competition with 15 scalps to date.

The Tigers haven't made any changes to the squad that accounted for NSW in Hobart, but may consider playing versatile all-rounder Matt Johnston at the expense of middle-order rookie Ashton May.

Johnston offers added variety with the ball but the final decision will come down to the balance George Bailey and the Tigers' brains trust opt for on the day.

Bailey was in sparkling form with a hard-hitting 94 against the Blues and followed up with a classy 117 in the Shield contest.

His form and that of talented middle-order batsman Mark Cosgrove is also a bonus for the home side and there are few more damaging batsmen than the former South Australian at his free-scoring best.

With high stakes on the line, expect a tight contest to unfold in Hobart. The onus will be on the Bulls to push the pace in search of a bonus point victory and this should make for a thrilling final round fixture.