THE EDGE: The Edge previews The Hundred clash between Manchester Originals v Trent Rockets with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
Manchester Originals v Trent Rockets
MATCH OVERVIEW:
A new week begins at the Hundred on Betdaq Betting Exchange, and we kick it off with Manchester Originals hosting Trent Rockets. So far we have had a lot of very one sided games at this tournament, and with squads missing some key players due to other commitments (MLC in America etc) and the England v West Indies Test series still on, the UK cricket media already have their knives out! Manchester Originals were one of the sides that started very poorly; they only managed 86/8 and that was swiftly chased down with 43 balls to spare. That gave them a net run rate of -3.332 which after everyone had played put them bottom of the table.
As I have said this week, net run rate definitely matters in the race for playoff spots in these franchise leagues, and that was a shocking start. Trent Rockets put in the most impressive display in their opening game – they were the only side to win batting first, the only side 140 as all the sides played their opening games last week. They posted 185/5 and then had Northern Superchargers 71/7 with most of the crowd leaving early. I think every Sky Sports switched to another sport on the main channel! That was a flawless display – their top scorer was Tom Banton who opened the batting; ironically he played for Northern Superchargers last season when they finished bottom of the table!
As things stand, more information has come to light about Jos Buttler – it looks like he could miss the whole tournament. That would be a huge blow to Manchester Originals; they really needed him and Phil Salt to fire at the top of the order as their middle order looks quite weak. This could be another tough night for the home side.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
This will be the second game at Old Trafford, and it’s fair to say the opening game was surprising. Not many would have saw a score of 86/8 coming – batting conditions have generally been good at this ground, and while we did see a range of scores here in the T20 Blast we did see scores over 200 chased down. I wouldn’t go into this game expecting another low score to be honest, especially if Trent Rockets bat first.
RECOMMENDED BET:
With such a difference in performance levels between the sides in their opening games, it’s no surprise to see Trent Rockets as decent favourites here at 1.7. I still feel that price offers good value – Trent Rockets tick a lot of boxes and to be honest they were the best batting side so far. Jos Buttler injured is a huge blow at the top of the order for Manchester Originals and they will struggle without their key man. Their middle order looks weak in my opinion so they need a good start at the top of the order, and without Buttler that will cause major issues. Trent Rockets are worth a confident bet in my opinion.
The Edge Says:
Three points win Trent Rockets to beat Manchester Originals at 1.7 on Betdaq Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/ManTre
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
As I said above, just because we saw a very low score here in the opening game doesn’t mean we’ll see a low score here. Scoring conditions at Old Trafford are good – you wouldn’t be surprised to see another 180+ from Trent Rockets if they bat first for example. I feel the best in-running play will be taking on the Manchester Originals batting, especially their middle order which looks weak to me. Even in good batting conditions I can see the Trent Rockets bowling going very well against the Manchester Originals middle order.
