CS vs CK Match Preview
While they will be disappointed with the eventual outcome, the Stags played extremely well in their opening match against Wellington.
The Stags opted to bowl first but things didn’t go according to plan as Wellington crossed the 80-run mark inside the Power Play. While Tom Bruce and Jayden Lennox picked up 2 wickets each, the opposition batsmen continued to pummel them, putting a mammoth target of 215 for the Stags.
The chase wasn’t off to the best of starts as opener Greg Hay fell cheaply. However, Ben Smith and Dane Cleaver laid a good foundation, putting up 54 runs for the second wicket. Later on, Tom Bruce, who put up an excellent all-round performance, and Josh Clarkson put up a brilliant 79-run partnership to get the hosts tantalizingly close to the target but the Stags fell short by just 2 runs as they failed to garner any points from this game.
The Kings have reached the Finals in each of the last 2 seasons and have one of the strongest teams in the league as of now.
Apart from Chad Bowes and Matthew Boyle, none of the batsmen have made a significant contribution to the Canterbury line-up. Bowes has scored a half-century in both innings so far, while Boyle played a gritty inning of 30 in the last game against the Aces.
Henry Shipley and Angus McKenzie picked up 2 wickets each but that wasn’t nearly enough to prevent the Aces, who crossed the line with 3 deliveries to spare.
Weather Report
The weather is expected to be quite windy and humid, with temperatures ranging from 14-24 degrees Celsius.
Pitch Report
The pitch at Pukekura Park is pretty flat and good to bat on as the even bounce makes it easy for the batsmen to score runs. The boundaries too are on the smaller side, and we can surely expect some fireworks during the game. The average first innings score in Super Smash here is between 175-180.
Notable stats
Joshua Clarkson’s Superb Strike Rate
Joshua Clarkson has been one of the mainstays of Central Stags’ batting lineup ever since his T20 debut in 2015. During his 65 innings, Clarkson has scored 1343 runs at a strike rate of 150.56.
Team News
With no reports of any injuries from either of the squads, we do not expect the teams to make any changes to their playing eleven for this match.
CS vs CK Probable 11
CS Playing 11
- Ben Smith
- Greg Hay
- Dane Cleaver (Wk)
- Ross Taylor
- Tim Bruce (C)
- Josh Clarkson
- Doug Bracewell
- Jayden Lennox
- Brett Johnson
- Raymond Toole
- Brett Randell
CK Playing 11
- Chad Bowes
- Matthew Boyle
- Leo Carter
- Cole McConchie (C)
- Cam Fletcher (Wk)
- Mitchell Hay
- Henry Shipley
- Angus Mackenzie
- Todd Astle
- William ORourke
- Ed Nutall
Dream11 Prediction
We are backing the Central Stags to win this one. Their batting looks in good form, with Tom Bruce and Jayden Lennox in particularly good touch and they are likely to be pretty effective on the flat track of Pukekura Park. On the other hand, Canterbury Kings doesn’t seem to have found its rhythm yet.
Top Picks
Tom Bruce: Tom Bruce put up a brilliant all-round performance for the Stags in the last match. He scored 56 runs at a strike rate of 243.57 and also picked up 2 wickets.
Chad Bowes: Chad Bowes has scored half-centuries in both his innings so far and has scored a total of 108 runs at a strike rate of 158.82.
Henry Shipley: Henry Shipley is likely to be quite effective with his medium pacers in this game. He has already picked up 4 wickets in 2 matches and can also swing the willow quite effectively lower down the order.
CS vs CK Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: D Cleaver
Batters: L Carter, C Bowes, B Smith, T Bruce (C), M Boyle
All-rounders: J Clarkson, H Shipley (VC)
Bowlers: E Nuttall, J Lennox, A McKenzie
