Manchester Originals vs Northern Superchargers predictions: Salt can lead from the front
- Northern Superchargers beat Manchester Originals by 14 runs in the first meeting
- Phil Salt scored 40 in that defeat before following up with scores of 34 and 58
- Recommended bet: Salt top run scorer - Manchester Originals
Northern Superchargers remain very much in the hunt for the play-offs but know they cannot afford any more slip ups if they want to at least guarantee a place in the eliminator with just two games left of the regular season.
A slow start to the competition effectively ruined Manchester Originals' chances of progression but they have been improving as the competition has wore on and finally chalked up their first win on Friday, a result that eliminated London Spirit from the knockouts.
Team news
The biggest team news for the Manchester Originals came before a ball was bowled with Jos Buttler sidelined by a calf injury before it was then decided he would not recover in time to feature at all in the tournament.
That was a massive blow to take and perhaps it was understandable that they would take time to get over it, but Phil Salt has finally found his form and will continue to lead from the front, most likely with Matthew Hurst.
Ben Stokes has not made any kind of impression in his two starts for Northern Superchargers, scoring just two runs in two innings with the bat while going wicket-less with the ball.
Graham Clark did not get much of a chance to stake his claim for another starting spot in the rain-hit clash with Welsh Fire on Thursday, with Jordan Clark and Ben Dwarshuis hoping for a recall.
The stats
Manchester Originals lost their first five games in this year's Hundred, but got off the mark at the sixth attempt on Friday. However, they still prop up the standings due to an inferior net run rate to the team they beat, London Spirit, but both have been eliminated from the knockout stages.
After an opening defeat, Northern Superchargers reeled off three wins on the bounce before they were well beaten by Birmingham Phoenix with rain then coming to the rescue against Welsh Fire on Thursday.
In their three-game winning streak, the Superchargers beat the Originals by 14 runs at Headingley.
Harry Brook struck 58 in that win and now has 120 runs to his name to rank ninth in the runscoring charts, although team-mate Nicholas Pooran is ahead of him in fourth with 161 from his five innings.
Phil Salt endured a slow start to the tournament, scoring an aggregate of just 23 runs from his first three innings, but has passed that total in each of his next three, registering scores of 40, 34 and 58.
The Originals captain has now scored 155 runs in this year's competition to lie sixth in the scoring charts, with team-mate Matty Hurst in eighth with 132 from four innings.
Neither of these teams has a bowler in the top 14 of wicket-takers in this year's competition with Fazalhaq Farooqi in 15th with six scalps for the Originals, while Matthew Potts leads the way for the Superchargers with just five.
Prediction
Northern Superchargers have been installed as 4/6 favourites with LiveScore Bet to record a second win of the season over their derby rivals but recent performances do not inspire confidence. They were skittled for just 83 in a 10-wicket defeat to Birmingham before rain came to the rescue as they registered a mere 26-5 off 25 balls against Welsh Fire.
The Originals go into this clash on the back of a win and there is a temptation to support them at 6/5 with LiveScore Bet as they would like nothing more than to deny their rivals a chance of reaching the knockouts.
However, they have lost five of their six games to raise plenty of doubt about their hopes of making it back-to-back wins.
So the chance is taken on Salt to play another captain's knock and lead the way for the Originals, having struck 40, 34 and 58 in his last three innings - the first of which came against these opponents.
