Welsh Fire (WEF) will be eyeing a third straight win in the Hundred when they host Manchester Originals (MNR) at Sophia Gardens tonight. The Cardiff-based franchise defeated Northern Superchargers in their opening game and grabbed a comfortable victory over Southern Brave on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Manchester Originals lost their first match, hammered Birmingham Phoenix at home, and inclement weather forced them to share points with Northern Superchargers in the third game.
The home side will be without their captain Bairstow after the 31-year-old has joined the England squad for the Test series against India. Left-handed batsman Leus du Plooy or Glamorgan’s David Lloyd could replace Bairstow in the playing eleven. Both players have scored more than 300 runs in Vitality Blast 2021. With the likes of Ben Duckett, Tom Banton, Glenn Phillips, and James Neesham, the Welsh Fire still has a formidable batting line-up.
The bowling unit has been impressive as the spinners – Qais Ahmad and Matt Critchley – shone in the first match, while the pacers helped Welsh Fire defend 165 in their last game. Jake Ball has been economical and picked up a wicket in both fixtures.
With Buttler missing, 34-year-old Colin Munro will be leading the Manchester Originals batting unit. He is likely to open the batting with Phil Salt, who struck an 11-ball 22 against Birmingham Phoenix in the second match. Sam Hain, who has scored close to 400 runs in Vitality Blast 2021, could be Buttler’s replacement in the playing eleven. Also, uncapped Joe Clarke and Tom Lammonby will be keen to impress with the bat.
The Manchester Originals bowlers came up with a clinical performance against Birmingham Phoenix last week. Though it was Matt Parkinson who grabbed the headlines after his four-wicket, pacers Fred Klaassen and Steven Finn had an excellent game. The duo put the visitors under pressure by removing the openers before the powerplay. Carlos Brathwaite, too, chipped in with two wickets. Meanwhile, Lockie Ferguson has recovered from his injury and is likely to make his debut.
Top Five Fantasy Points scorers (previous match)
WEF: J Neesham (91 pts), B Duckett (74 pts), D Payne (54 pts), T Banton (54 pts), J Ball (31 pts)
*MNR: M Parkinson (118 pts), C Harrison (66 pts), C Brathwaite (59 pts), P Salt (38 pts), F Klaassen (37 pts)
*Fantasy points from the match against Birmingham Phoenix
The Hundred Stats
Most Runs: WEF – T Duckett (94 runs); MNR – C Brathwaite (41 runs)
Most Wickets: WEF – Q Ahmad (4 wickets); MNR – M Parkinson (5 wickets)
Most Sixes: WEF – G Phillips, J Neesham, T Banton (2 sixes); MNR – C Brathwaite & C Munro (1 six)
Most Fours: WEF – B Duckett (13 fours); MNR – P Salt (5 fours)
Most Catches: WEF – J Cobb, I Cockbain, T Banton (2 catches); MNR – T Lammonby, P Salt, S Finn (2 catches)
Squads
WEF (likely): T Banton, B Duckett, G Phillips, L du Plooy/D Lloyd, J Neesham, I Cockbain, M J Critchley, J Cobb, Q Ahmad, J Ball, D Payne
MNR (likely): C Munro, P Salt, J Clarke, S Hain, T Lammonby, C Brathwaite, C Harrison, T Hartley/L Ferguson, F Klaassen, S Finn, M Parkinson
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Parameswaran Sankaranarayanan
Parameswaran Sankaranarayan is a sports enthusiast who has worked in print, website, and other digital platforms. He was part of the editorial team of first-ever Indian football-based website - IndianFootball.com (now defunct) - and passionately follows the latest happenings in world football. During his time as a journalist, he had the opportunity to interact with some of the iconic personalities in Indian sports and witness some memorable moments in Indian football.
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