THE EDGE: The Edge previews The Hundred format game between Welsh Fire v Trent Rockets with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
MATCH OVERVIEW:
A new week begins at the Hundred, and we kick it off with Welsh Fire against Trent Rockets on BETDAQ Betting Exchange. Welsh Fire have been the whipping boys of the Hundred finishing second last in 2021 and stone last in 2022 without winning a single game, however they have started 2023 better. They have two wins and a tie from their five games so far, and that puts them sitting in mid-table. There hasn’t really been a stand-out side in the Hundred this season, so Welsh Fire have their first chance at reaching the playoffs should they play good cricket from this position.
It’s been a different story for Trent Rockets, but they have played one game less and a win here would definitely put them back into the mix for the playoffs. One win and a washout from four games isn’t a great position though, and you could easily call this a must win game for Trent Rockets. The thing about the Trent Rockets results however is that they have played Oval Invincibles and Northern Superchargers in their last two games, and they topped the table after the weekend.
It goes without saying that Jonny Bairstow is absolutely key for Welsh Fire. He makes their side far stronger, and when he wasn’t here last season they were woeful. Roelof van der Merwe has been excellent too. Trent Rockets have a top class side on paper, but they need to fire. Alex Hales and Dawid Malan can win the game on their own if they get going at the top of the order. This could be an excellent clash.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
This will be the third game here, and the opening two games have had very similar scores but the conditions couldn’t have been more different! At first glance it might seem a low scoring ground but the 94/3 actually only came off 40 balls when we had a shortened game. And then Welsh Fire were bowled out for 87 when we had a full game. Batting conditions have been generally good at Cardiff this summer, and Southern Brave only needed 59 balls to chase the 87 all out. I would expect reasonably high scoring conditions.
RECOMMENDED BET:
This is a close game if you look at the betting, but I feel there’s excellent value on Trent rockets at 1.91. I’d have them closer to 1.8 – I know Jonny Bairstow can win the game on his own with his batting, but once you get him early I feel that goes a long way to winning the game for Trent Rockets. The squads are very different here – I feel the Trent Rockets squad is very strong all over, while Welsh Fire are lacking top quality to back up Bairstow. Trent Rockets do need the openers to start playing better, but their middle order has been very good and that can win the game here.
The Edge Says:
Three points win Trent Rockets to beat Welsh Fire at 1.91 with Betdaq Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/WelTre
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
I would expect very good batting conditions here, so looking for trades on the batting side is a nice option. That being said, I don’t trust the Welsh Fire batting outside of Bairstow so I will mainly look to support Trent Rockets while batting. Perhaps sit out of the market while the openers are batting, and then support the middle order. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a very high score if Trent Rockets bat first.
