Auckland Aces vs Otago Volts, The Ford Trophy 2022, Today Match Prediction 18 December 2022

auc vs ov Match Prediction & Analysis

Ford Trophy is played in different legs this season with Super Smash and 4-day Franchise matches coming in between. Otago and Auckland will play their last matches of the second leg after which they will halt for a month with Super Smash taking place. Otago are placed in the bottom half of the points table and will be looking to surge up the table. Auckland are reeling at the bottom and will need to win every match to keep their qualification chances alive.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Auckland Aces Preview

Auckland chased down a tricky target of 150 runs with 3 wickets remaining in the last game. Robert O Donnell lead their batting unit scoring an unbeaten 54 runs despite wickets falling around him. George Worker (29 runs) and Danru Ferns (17 runs) scored crucial runs in the low scoring thriller. All their remaining batters were dismissed for just single digit scores.

Their bowling unit bundled the opposition for just 147 runs. Ben Lister (4/40) and Danru Ferns (2/15) rattled the top order and picked up 5 wickets in the first powerplay. Matt Gibson (2/30), Keanu (1/24), and Solia (1/15) picked up remaining wickets to perform well as a unit.

Key players: Ben Lister, Danru Ferns, Robert O Donnell

Auckland Aces Predicted Playing XI:

George Worker, Sean Solia, William O Donnell, Robert O Donnell, Mark Chapman,Ben Horne, Ben Lister, Danru Ferns, Keanu, Louis Delport, Matt Gibson

Otago Volts Preview

Otago got their second victory last game against Canterbury by 5 wickets. Hamish Rutherford took their team across the line scoring an unbeaten 76 runs in the match. Dale Philips, Finnie, and Rippon chipped with small cameos to build some mini partnerships in the middle. Glenn Philips and Dean Foxcroft missed to score big runs in the last match.

Spinner Michael Rippon was the pick of the bowlers with the spell of 4/32 in the last game. Pacers Bacon (2/27) and Jacob Duffy (3/32) chipped in with crucial wickets to bundle out the opposition for just 160 runs. Michael Rae bowled a superb spell of 9-1-35-1 in the match.

Key players: Michael Rippon, Hamish Rutherford, Jacob Duffy

Otago Volts Predicted Playing XI:

Dale Philips, Finnie, Rippon, Hamish Rutherford, Jacob Duffy, Bacon, Michael Rae, Glenn Philips, Dean Foxcroft, Llew Johnson, Max Chu 

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

Queenstown is a balanced pitch which gives something for both the batters and bowlers. The hard pitch might give true bounce and seam movement for the bowlers. Queenstown will have a cool and breezy climate which is very suitable for playing the game.

Venue Details

Queenstown will host their first match of the season and both skippers will be unaware of the playing conditions. The average scores in the last few matches at this venue has been 150-160 runs.

Toss: To Bowl

Chasing teams have a win loss ratio of 10-5 in the completed matches so far and we expect the captains to the same trend in this match too.