Central Stags vs Wellington Firebirds, Super Smash 2020-21, Today Match Prediction 27 Dec 2020

cd vs wf Match Prediction & Analysis

Super Smash 2020-21 started with the opening match between the two finalists of the last season and Wellington did a repeat of their finals performance with a victory over Auckland in the tournament opener. Wellington will look to continue their winning momentum in this match too and take advantage of the rustiness of Central in fourth Districts as this is their first match this year. Central Districts ended in fourth place last year and were knocked out in the group stages itself. They will look to finish inside the top-3 this time around and a victory in this match will be ideal start for their campaign.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Central Stags Preview

Wellington Firebirds chased a massive total of 178 runs with the help of fifties from Finn Allen and Troy Johnson on either side of the innings. Fraser Colson (22 runs), Jamie Gibson (24 runs), and Lauchie Johns (11* runs) played a vital hand in chase with some quick fire runs.

Peter Younghusband and Hamish Bennett were the pick of the bowlers as they picked up 1 wicket each and gave runs at less than 7 RPO. Their bowling unit failed to pick wickets at regular intervals and took just 3 wickets in the match last game. Logan Van Beek, Rachin Ravindra, and Micheal Snedden went for runs at over 9+ RPO last game.

Top players to bet on:

Finn Allen – Finn Allen scored 53 runs off 23 balls with 9 boundaries and a six. His knock set the tone of the chase for his team as their team scored 68 runs in the power play. We expect him to play yet another attacking knock in this match too.

Hamish Bennett – Bennett had bowling figures of 4-0-28-1 in the last game. He bowled in the crucial power play and death overs and gave runs at just 7 RPO shows his effectiveness with the ball in hand.  

Central Stags Predicted Playing XI:

Rachin Ravindra, Finn Allen, Troy Johnson, Michael Bracewell (c), Fraser Colson, Jamie Gibson, Logan van Beek, Lauchie Johns (wk), Peter Younghusband, Hamish Bennett, Michael Snedden

Central Stags Actual Playing XI:

Dane Cleaver, Josh Clarkson, Ajaz Patel, George Worker, Doug Bracewell, Bayley Wiggins, Christian Leopard, Blair Tickner, Joey Field, Tom Bruce, Kieran Noema-Barnett

Wellington Firebirds Preview

Central Stags will be led by the swashbuckling batsmen Tom Bruce in this season too. Veteran Ross Taylor, Dane Cleaver, George Worker, and Noema-Barnett will take care of the batting department with the all-rounders to come in the lower order. They have good depth in their batting line-up with match winners till No.7.

Their squad has a number of quality pacers with the likes of Adam Milne, Ben Wheeler, Doug Bracewell, and Blair Tickner. Spinner Ajaz Patel failed to find his spot in national squad owing to fitness concerns after an injury lay-off. He will look to lead the spin department and prove his fitness in the super smash series.

Top players to bet on:

Ross Taylor – Taylor was dropped from the NZ T20I side recently after his poor returns. He is a veteran player who has played 100+ t20I matches and will look to prove his mettle in super smash to make a comeback to national team.  

Adam Milne – Adam Milne is a raw pace bowler who can clock 150+ kmph consistently with the ball. We expect him to trouble the batsmen with his raw pace and bounce in this match.

Wellington Firebirds Predicted Playing XI:

Tom Bruce, Ross Taylor, Dane Cleaver, George Worker, Noema-Barnett, Josh Clarkson, Adam Milne, Ben Wheeler, Doug Bracewell, Blair Tickner, Ajaz Patel

Wellington Firebirds Actual Playing XI:

Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway, Logan van Beek, Jamie Gibson, Hamish Bennett, PY Husband, Fraser Colson, Michael Bracewell, Finn Allen, Troy Johnson, James Neesham

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

Napier has a dark and cloudy weather on the match day with 40-50% chances of rain as per the weather forecasters. We expect rain to have only a small impact in this match.

Venue Details

Napier is one of the batting friendly pitches in the Kiwi circuit and teams are expected to score runs around 180 in this match. Pacers will find little support in this track.

Toss: To Bowl

No target is safe on this track and visiting Pakistan team chased 170+ runs on this track in the last game played here. Both captains will look to chase the total at this venue.