*THE HUNDRED MENS COMPETITION-MANCHESTER ORIGINALS VS LONDON SPIRIT MATCH 6 2023 PREVIEW*
*THE BUILD UP:*
Losses hurt bigtime and to open your account with a loss hurts even more. Such has been the story of Manchester Originals and the London Spirit so far where the two outfits have failed to capitalise on the key moments and win the opener. This game to be played at the home ground of M.O presents both teams with an opportunity to kick start proceedings in this competition, and give their fans something to cheer about. The two captains, Jos Buttler who’s a World Cup winning skipper and the highly talented batter Daniel Lawrence would look to lead from the front after the kind of start they got with their respective bats in the opener.
The Sunil Narine will always be a threat and the Originals have to take their cap off and bow down to the T20 hero who snatched the last game away from them. Though they would be a side to worry, there’s plenty that happened which boasts of the ability to cheer them up. Banking on the form of their pacers Worrall, Thompson and the Australian sensation Ellis, they’d look to comeback and forget the Oval bashing as soon as possible.
*LONDON SPIRITS PROBABLE XI:*
Adam Rossington (wk), Daniel Lawrence (c), Zak Crawley, Matthew Wade, Daryl Mitchell, Ravi Bopara, Matthew Critchley, Jordan Thompson, Liam Dawson, Nathan Ellis, Daniel Worrall
The pitch at the Emirates Old Trafford looks like a good surface to bat on. With the ball coming nicely onto the bat, the batters can play their strokes freely. There will be plenty of runs on offer for them once they get settled in the middle. Expect the likes of Zak Crawley, Daniel Lawrence, Matthew Wade and Daryl Mitchell to have good games. Zak should join the side and with the impeccable form he was at the Ashes, tonking bowlers left right and centre, the Hundred seems to be the right place to further display his outrageous form. The side is lucky to have these established all format stars who on their day, can cause havoc and wreck the ship of the opposition.
Nathan Ellis with his skiddy action and the pace that he offers never goes off the limelight. He is strong, hits the deck hard and oozes energy. He was amongst the wickets the other day and also kept the run scoring in check. His opening spell vs the English opening pair, Jos and Salt will make for great viewing.
*MANCHESTER ORIGINALS PROBABLE XI:*
Philip Salt (wk), Jos Buttler (c), Laurie Evans, Max Holden, Ashton Turner, Paul Walter, Jamie Overton, Usama Mir, Tom Hartley, Joshua Little, Josh Tongue
Usama Mir, the young Pakistani leg spinner had the batters walking in the ODI series vs NZ and on a flat pitch where batters would be assisted, it makes sense why the team would look to take him on as well and in the process, create wicket taking opportunities and strike big. His wily action coupled with his mental strength will be tested against a powerpacked middle order of the Spirits.
In a shortened game vs Welsh Fire, the Originals were on the wrong side of the result. One aspect where they would look to comeback stronger is their bowling which was in all sorts of tatters as L Wells tore it apart. None of the specialist bowlers conceded at a runrate of less than 2 per ball, making it hard as a captain for Buttler to command his troops. Alot is expected out of Josh Tongue and Josh Little, two pacers from either side of the border as they look to claim their first win in this tournament.
*MY PREDICTIONS:*
*FOR LONDON:*
Highest run getter- Daniel Lawrence/Zak Crawley
Highest wicket taker- Nathan Ellis
*FOR ORIGINALS:*
Highest run getter- Jos Buttler/Phil Salt
Highest wicket taker- Usama Mir/Josh Little
*FOR THIS GAME:*
The London Spirits to emerge victorious.