This article will talk about the probable XIs for both teams and continue with the Dream11 predictions and the winning fantasy team for Match 23 of “The Hundred” between the Birmingham Phoenix and Welsh Fire that is scheduled to take place on the 9th of August 2021.
The Birmingham Phoenix who has won 3 games in their 5 games are on 4th in the points table and will look for a win when they take on the Welsh Fire on Monday at Edgbaston. The Fire is in 7th place with just 2 wins under their belt and would want to make it 3 to have any real chance to qualify for the next stage.
The Ben Duckett-led Welsh Fire suffered their 3rd consecutive defeat in the last game when they lost their last against the Trent Rockets by wickets. On the back of a half-century from Glenn Phillips and a 30 from Leus du Plooy, the Welsh Fire reached a competitive 139/8 batting first. But it wasn’t enough as Samit Patel’s 22-ball 40 gave the Rockets a win with 10 balls to spare, despite another good spell of bowling by Qais Ahmed who took 2/23.
On the other hand, the Pheonix won a high-scoring game by 6 wickets against the Oval. Colin Ingram’s 81 lifted the Oval’s total to 172/3 but a good start by Finn Allen(23 off 9) and Will Smeed(45 off 28) followed by some sensational striking from skipper Moeen Ali(49 from 26) and from the middle-order batsman Chris Benjamin who made 37 off 16, the Birmingham side won the game with 6 balls to spare.
Match Details
Venue: Edgbaston, Birmingham
Pitch and Weather: The pitch in Edgbaston is one of the best for the batsman. In the last match, both teams scored more than 340 runs combined and it should remain the case in this match as well.
The weather will be cloudy with temperatures reaching 21-22 but it is unlikely that rain will interrupt the match.
Date & Time: August 9, 6.30 PM Local time, 11.00 PM IST
Probable Playing XIs
The Pheonix had a near-perfect game in the last match. They chased down a massive target of 173 from 100 balls which would give them a lot of confidence as the game is being played at the same venue. At the same time, they would want their bowlers to bowl much better than they did vs the Oval. But they would most likely go in with the same 11.
Welsh Fire’s top-order let them down in the last with the exciting Tom Banton is yet to play a significant inning. Despite a revival of sorts from the middle-order, they didn’t get a strong finish from the lower-order as only 13 were scored off the last 13 balls. Also, their bowling departments didn’t put a performance which they would have liked which cause their 3rd consecutive defeat.
Birmingham Phoenix
Finn Allen, Will Smeed, Miles Hammond, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali(C), Chris Benjamin(WK), Benny Howell, Pat Brown, Adam Milne, Tom Helm, Imran Tahir
Welsh Fire
Josh Cobb, Tom Banton, Ben Duckett, Glenn Phillips, Jimmy Neesham, Leus du Plooy, Graeme White, Luke Fletcher, David Payne/ Liam Plunkett, Qais Ahmad, Matt Milnes
Match Prediction
Birmingham Pheonix playing at their home ground will be the odds on favorites to win this contest against the Welsh Fire. The Pheonix dominated their last 2 games played here and expect them to make it 3 in a row here.
Fantasy Tips
Batsman: The Pheonix openers Finn Allen and Will Smeed produced some top-class hitting in the last match giving them a much-needed impetus while chasing a huge target. So the duo can be picked in the fantasy. Welsh Fire batsman Glenn Phillips came back to form in the last by scoring a half-century.
Wicket-Keeper: Chris Benjamin from Birmingham Pheonix can be the lone wicket-keeper of the fantasy side. The 22-year-old has made some crucial runs for the team down the order.
All-rounders: James Neesham has played a vital role for the Welsh Fire in this tournament. Neesham has picked 6 wickets to go with his 50-odd runs. Similarly, the exciting duo of Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone, who have been match-winners for Pheonix can be picked as the other 2 options which will be added to by Benny Howell.
Bowlers: Welsh leg-spinner Qais Ahmed who has picked 7 wickets thus far can be selected as one of the bowlers in the side. The speedsters David Payne and Adam Milne from either side are the other 2 choices in the fantasy XI.
Captaincy Choices
Fantasy Team: Finn Allen, Will Sameed, Glenn Phillips(VC), Chris Benjamin, Moeen Ali(C), Liam Livingstone, Benny Howell, Adam Milne, James Neesham, Adam Payne, Qais Ahmed.
Captain: Moeen Ali
The all-rounder has in red-hot form in the shortest format of the game as well in this Hundred competition and he can be made the captain.
Vice-Captain: Glenn Phillips
The Welsh Fire batsman will enjoy the batting conditions at Edgbaston, and after scoring a half-century last game he will be confident.
Dream11 Team
