OVI vs WEF Match Preview
Skipper Sam Billings has a strong Oval Invincibles team at his disposal. Jason Roy and Will Jacks are likely to open the batting for the team and will look to provide a solid start. Jacks was the leading run-getter for the team last season, scoring 261 runs at an average of 43.50.
Jordan Cox and Billings will play the role of anchor during the middle overs, while Sam Curran and Heinrich Klaasen will look to boost the run rate towards the end of the innings.
The spinners did an excellent job in the last match as Sunil Narine and Nathan Sowter picked up 5 wickets between them. The seam attack will feature Gus Atkinson and Zak Chappell along with Tom Curran and Sam Curran.
Welsh Fire’s batting unit is a bit dented after the exit of Ben Duckett, who was the team’s top-scorer last season. However, they still have a few quality batsmen, and will hope that they take the team to a big total. Luke Wells and Joe Clarke will start the proceedings with the bat, and Stevie Eskinazi, Glenn Phillips, and Tom Abell will follow lower down the order.
Phillips will have to be the vital cog for Welsh Fire. Coming to the bowling, the pave attack is quite strong thanks to the presence of Haris Rauf and Shaheen Shah Afridi. Rauf was particularly impressive in the last match as he picked up 3 wickets for just 27 runs.
They will have the support of David Willey and David Payne at the other end, while Roelof van der Merwe is the only spinner on the team.
Weather Report
The weather is expected to remain mostly clear with temperatures of below 20 degrees Celsius.
Pitch Report
The pitch at the Kennington Oval does help the quicker bowlers early on in the match. They will be able to get some movement off the seam as well as through the air, provided they bowl a good line and length. However, the surface gets easier to bat on as the match progresses. The average first-inning score on this ground is around 140.
Notable stats
Sunil Narine: No Slowdown Yet
Sunil Narine has picked up 11 wickets in his last 8 appearances at a strike rate of 12.30. His economy rate is very good too, at 6.11.
Team News
There are no updates regarding injuries from either side.
OVI vs WEF Probable 11
OVI Playing 11
- Jason Roy
- Will Jacks
- Jordan Cox
- Heinrich Klaasen
- Sam Curran
- Sam Billings (C)
- Tom Curran
- Sunil Narine
- Gus Atkinson
- Zak Chappell
- Nathan Sowter
WEF Playing 11
- Luke Wells
- Joe Clarke (Wk)
- Glenn Phillips
- Steve Eskinazi
- Tom Abell (C)
- David Willey
- David Payne
- Roelof van der Merwe
- Ben Green
- Haris Rauf
- Shaheen Shah Afridi
Dream11 Prediction
We are backing the Oval Invincibles to win. Their record against Welsh is impeccable. They have a well-rounded team and the batting looks especially strong when compared to their opponents.
Top Picks
Will Jacks: Will Jacks was among the top-3 run-getters last season. He scored 261 runs at an average of 43.50 and a strike rate of 171.71.
Sam Curran: A dependable all-rounder, Curran has scored 226 runs in his last 9 matches and also picked up 9 wickets.
Shaheen Shah Afridi: Afridi is making his Hundred debut this season and has already bowled a couple of good spells. He has picked up 3 wickets in 30 deliveries and has an economy of 133.33 per hundred deliveries.
OVI vs WEF Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: S Billings
Batters: H Klaasen, J Roy, W Jacks (C), G Phillips
All-rounders: S Curran (VC), S Narine, D Willey
Bowlers: S Afridi, H Rauf, N Sowter