The Hundred 2023, men's match preview: Welsh Fire v Trent Rockets

Team news, key matchups, TV and streaming information, weather forecast, odds, form rundown, start time, venue, squad lists and more

Joe Williams | 13/08/2023 at 19:01

What's the match?

Welsh Fire host Trent Rockets in the next match of the men's Hundred 2023.

When is it taking place?

The game is due to start at 6.30pm BST on Monday, August 14.

Where is the match taking place?

Welsh Fire's home ground is Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.

Who's got the form?

Welsh Fire's impressive start to the season came to a halt at the weekend as they were dealt a nine-wicket defeat by the Southern Brave in Cardiff.

Only Stevie Eskinazi was able to put up a meaningful score with 38 as the returning Jonny Bairstow and Joe Clarke both recorded ducks. Fire are still in a healthy position with two wins, two losses and a tie from their five matches.

Meanwhile, defending champions Trent Rockets only have one win to their name after a two-run loss to the London Spirit in their last outing. The close defeat means they have lost their last two games, but Joe Root showed he is just as explosive in the short form of the game as he is in the Test arena with an enterprising 72.

What's the key matchup?

Treating the weekend defeat as an outlier, Fire have been able to rely on their line-up to get runs down the order. Opener Eskinazi has been the most impressive and reliable though and they will need another big performance from him.

Rockets bowler Luke Wood, has enjoyed some electric spells with the ball, none better than his efforts against Northern Superchargers where he took 3 for 23. Rockets will be hoping he can hit those heights again.

This will be Pakistan bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf's last game for the Fire before they depart to join up with their country, so they'll both be looking to go out with a bang.

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Joe Root returned to action following the men's Ashes against Northern Superchargers (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Can I get tickets?

There are still tickets remaining for this match but they are selling fast.

Tickets can be found by visiting The Hundred's website.

What's the weather forecast?

Cardiff is set for clear and sunny skies on Monday evening with temperatures reaching 20 degrees.

What are the squads?

Welsh Fire: Jonny Bairstow, Tom Abell, David Willey, Shaheen Afridi (Lockie Ferguson from August 15), Joe Clarke, Glenn Phillips, Ben Green, Haris Rauf (Matt Henry from August 15), David Payne, Roelof van der Merwe, Jake Ball, Stephen Eskinazi, Dan Douthwaite, George Scrimshaw, Luke Wells, Chris Cooke

Trent Rockets: Joe Root, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Imad Wasim (Ish Sodhi from August 10), Dawid Malan, Alex Hales, Lewis Gregory, Luke Wood, Colin Munro, Sam Cook, Daniel Sams, Samit Patel, Sam Hain, Brad Wheal, Matt Carter, Tom Moores, John Turner

What's the team news?

There are no new injury concerns for the teams at the time of writing.

What are the possible starting XIs?

Welsh Fire: Jonny Bairstow, Joe Clarke, Stephen Eskinazi, Tom Abell, Glenn Phillips, Luke Wells, David Willey, Roelof van der Merwe, Ben Green, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf

Trent Rockets: Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Tom Kolher-Cadmore, Sam Hain, Joe Root, Colin Munro, Lewis Gregory, Daniel Sams, Luke Wood, Ish Sodhi, Sam Cook

What are the odds?

Trent Rockets are favourites at 4/5 while Welsh Fire are the relative outsiders at 1/1.

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Shaheen Shah Afridi's stint is set to come to an end (Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images)

What's the prediction?

The Welsh Fire revival has been impressive and the chance to return to winning ways and damage the Rockets' title defence is too good an opportunity to turn down.