Durham vs Birmingham Bears Tips, Predictions and Bet Builder

Durham and Birmingham Bears will look to follow up their wins on Friday in the scrap to finish in the top four of the North Group when they meet in a crucial T20 Blast match on Sunday.

Durham have found the winning formula in this format this season and currently lead the way in the North after posting six wins and three losses in their first nine group games.

Alex Lees’ men earned their third home win in a row on Friday when they posted 231-5 against Nottinghamshire before bowling the visitors out for 182.

Bowling all-rounder Kasey Aldridge, who is on loan from Somerset, picked up 5-29 after Colin Ackermann (83) and Lees (77) had put most of Durham’s runs on the board.

Birmingham, meanwhile, sit fourth in the nine-team table after they successfully chased 155 for victory over Leicestershire on Friday with six wickets in hand and 10 balls to spare.

All-rounder Dan Mousley has been their most consistent performer, hitting 234 runs at an average of 39 and taking 10 wickets. 

Durham edged out the Bears in a tense encounter at Edgbaston earlier in the campaign and will be looking to complete the double on Sunday.

Durham vs Birmingham Bears Tips Summary

Market	Tip	Odds
Match Result	Birmingham Bears	4/5
Best Bet	Graham Clark 30+ Runs	11/10
Bet Builder	Durham to win, Graham Clark 30+ Runs & Sam Hain 20+ Runs	5/1

Key Match Stats

• Matches at Chester-le-Street have been high-scoring, with both sides regularly posting totals above 170 in recent seasons.
• Durham have won their last three home T20 Blast matches.
• Durham beat Birmingham by three wickets in their last meeting at Edgbaston, chasing down 144 with 17 balls to spare.
• Graham Clark has scored 40 and 53 in his last two Blast innings at Chester-le-Street
• Sam Hain averages over 48 in the Blast this year with a high score of 92 not out and another 50 against Leicestershire last time out

Durham vs Birmingham Bears Prediction

Best Bet: Graham Clark – 30+ Runs @ 11/10

If Durham are to get the better of the Bears, Clark is likely to be at the heart of their batting effort.

The opener has been in good touch, providing brisk starts and anchoring the innings when required. 

He has averaged just under 25 in this format with 221 runs from nine innings, but 93 of those runs have come in his last two knocks.

With the Chester-le-Street wicket yielding some big totals of late, including Durham’s 231-5 on Friday, it could prove profitable to back Clark for another sizeable score.

Simon Barlow says:

Clark’s ability to clear the ropes and rotate the strike makes him a key man for Durham, especially on a true Riverside pitch. He could well accumulate another 30-plus score against a team he scored 40 against at Edgbaston in May.

Durham vs Birmingham Bears Bet Builder Tip

• Durham to win
• Graham Clark to Score 30+ Runs
• Sam Hain to Score 20+ runs
  
  Pays 5/1

Durham have delivered some mature performances in the Blast this year and are turning Chester-le-Street into a fortress after recording three straight Blast wins there.

The Bears will not lack confidence after their measured chase against Leicestershire, but they appear to lack the firepower of Durham’s middle order.

Clark’s consistency make him a solid pick to get 30 or more runs on a true track, but it also worth adding Sam Hain to grab a score of 20 or more into Bet Builders.

The Hong Kong-born right-hander is the Bears’ top run scorer in the Blast and averages more than 48 this year.

Learn more about how Bet Builders work in our Bet Builder guide.

The runs should flow at Chester-le-Street, where Durham’s greater firepower at the top and in the middle give them the edge over the Bears. Hain is capable of extending his streak of notable knocks while Clark has been a reliable scorer in this competition,

adds Simon Barlow.

Read more cricket betting tips and predictions on site.

Tactics, Form and Team News

Durham are likely to stick with the same XI that won at Chester-le-Street on Friday and that means no place for England seamer Matthew Potts again.

He was rested following Durham’s County Championship match against Surrey.

Brydon Carse remains with the England squad so Aldridge and New Zealand international Zak Foulkes, who played for the Bears last season, will head up the pace bowling unit. 

Expected Durham XI: Clark, Lees (c), Ackermann, Nessham, McKinney, Rhodes, Robinson (wk), Aldridge, Foulkes, Sowter, Parkinson.

As for the Bears, Rob Yates and Richard Gleeson came into the side that won at Leicester on Friday and they look likely to keep their spots.

Jacob Bethell and Chris Woakes are on England duty while Moeen Ali has been left out of the squad with wrist spinner Jake Lintott an option to replace him against Durham.

Expected Birmingham Bears XI: Davies (c), Latham, Yates, Hain, Mousley, Lintott, Barnard, Garton, Hassan Ali, Briggs, Gleeson.

View the full market and more odds for Durham vs Birmingham Bears on site.

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.