Two of the most disappointing teams in this year’s competition meet at Lord’s on Sunday when London Spirit take on a Birmingham Phoenix side who, like them, are already eliminated.
Spirit’s Hundred fate was confirmed when they lost a fractious derby against MI London by four wickets on Thursday evening.
Despite an improved effort from their batters, a total of 160 didn’t prove to be enough against their rivals from The Oval, who clinched victory with six balls to spare.
That was their second loss in the space of a few days following a 37-run defeat at Headingley to Sunrisers Leeds.
Their attack has lacked penetration with Spirit failing to take a wicket until Leeds had already reached 148, while the balance of the team has not looked right all season.
Phoenix, meanwhile, were equally disappointing when they clocked up a fifth defeat in a row at home to the Sunrisers on Friday.
Both teams have explosive hitters, but neither side has found the consistency required to post challenging totals.
London Spirit v Birmingham Phoenix Tips Summary
Best Bet – Runs at Fall of 1st Wicket - Under 20.5 @ 10/11
Alternative Bet – James Coles 20+ Runs @ 5/6
Bet Builder – London Spirit to win, Lhuan-dre Pretorious - Top London Spirit Batter & A Fifty to be Scored @ 7/1
London Spirit v Birmingham Phoenix Prediction
Best Bet: Runs at Fall of 1st Wicket - Under 20.5 @ 10/11
Despite both teams having struggled with the ball, the run line for the fall of the first wicket looks too big at 20.5.
London Spirit’s opening stand against MI London mustered 21 runs on Thursday and that is the highest opening partnership from their six innings in The Hundred at Lord’s this year.
On average, the first wicket falls for 14.3 runs at the Home of Cricket in this year’s competition.
Birmingham Phoenix have not been making good enough starts recently with opening stands worth two and 12 runs respectively in their last two games, so the under looks playable here.
Alternative Bet: James Coles 20+ Runs @ 5/6
James Coles finally came good with the bat for London Spirit in Thursday’s defeat to MI London.
The all-rounder smashed five fours in a 23-ball knock of 30 not out, which at least gave his team a chance in a relatively high-scoring game for Lord’s.
Coles averages 29.42 in the T20 Blast and finished this year’s competition with 157 runs at 31.40.
At 22, he is a huge talent with a big future and may be ready to back up his good score from Thursday with another against a weaker bowling attack.
London Spirit v Birmingham Phoenix Bet Builder
London Spirit v Birmingham Phoenix Bet Builder
London Spirit to win
Lhuan-dre Pretorious - Top London Spirit Batter
A Fifty to be Scored
Pays 7/1
London Spirit’s deeper batting line-up and home familiarity give them the edge in this clash of teams with nothing but pride to play for.
Pretorious smashed his first half-century of the competition last time out and should go well again on the same track a few days later.
Finally, add a fifty to be scored to this Bet Builder. Half-centuries have been scored in all three previous matches at Lord’s in this year’s competition and the weak attacks of these sides ought to encourage the batters to play freely.
Learn more about how Bet Builders work in our Bet Builder guide.
Key Match Stats
Phoenix have posted paltry totals of 111 and 124 in their last two matches.
Joe Clarke has 217 runs in six matches at a strike rate of 144.
Spirit conceded 241 runs to Leeds Sunrisers last week.
David Willey struck 83 off 46 balls against Leeds.
Phoenix have lost five matches in a row.
Spirit have lost three in succession.
Tactics, Form & Team News
Spirit’s batting revolves around Jonny Bairstow, Liam Livingstone and Dewald Brevis, with Willey offering late‑innings firepower. Their bowling attack must tighten up after a poor showing against Leeds.
Expected London Spirit XI: Lhuan‑dre Pretorius, Jonny Bairstow, James Rew, Liam Livingstone (c), Dewald Brevis, James Coles, Jamie Overton, David Willey, Andrew Tye, Adam Milne, Adam Zampa.
Phoenix rely heavily on Joe Clarke, who has hit 217 runs in six matches at a strike rate of 144, with Will Smeed and Mitchell Owen needing to provide stronger starts.
Their bowling attack remains dependent on Usman Tariq’s breakthroughs.
Expected Birmingham Phoenix XI: Mitchell Owen, Will Smeed, Joe Clarke, Rehan Ahmed, Laurie Evans, Donovan Ferreira (c), Sean Dickson, Scott Currie, Chris Wood, Saqib Mahmood, Usman Tariq.
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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.
