Trent Rockets vs Manchester Originals Prediction: Stacked top orders, which one will fire?

The Hundred is now in the Final game and this has been a tournament bereft of some big-time overseas players, which has surely hurt the reputation a bit. Still, we are talking about top professional crickets so the competition level is going to be sky-high nonetheless. There is a team that collected steam and never looked, i.e. the Trent Rockets. The Rockets are going to play Manchester Originals to decide which team will bag the title this year. Can the table-toppers Rockets showcase why they made it there or will Originals keep building on the momentum?

The Trent Rockets was the only team to win six games during the Group Stages and has been in an incredible touch. They have a strong batting lineup and Dawid Malan leads them with 358 runs at an average of around 60 whereas Alex Hales as the opener has amassed 251 runs at an electric rate. The Colin Munro and Daniel Sams one-two punch in the middle provides the team with batters that can accelerate recovery as pinch hitters. Tom Kohler-Caldmore bats at the important number three position.

In terms of bowling, veteran Samit Patel has mustered 10 wickets at an average of around 16 whereas Sam Cook and Luke Woord form a right-left pace combination at the top, bringing in a lot of success. The team did receive a big blow when Tabraiz Shamsi left for the CPL, and he is someone who has been among the top bowlers in this format. Daniel Sams goes for a lot of runs while Lewis Gregory will have to find a fourth/fifth bowler to cover up the absence of Shamsi.

The Originals lit up the London Spirit during the Eliminator. Paul Walters’ 3 for 29 runs spell enabled the Originals to restrict the Spirit to 150. The chase of 151 isn’t that easy in this format but Laurie Evans came swinging off the gates and alongside Salt, he formed a 101 runs partnership in just 50 balls. Evans ended up with an incredible 34-ball 72 runs innings whereas Salt collected 29 runs in 18 balls. Despite a stutter in the middle, the strong start enabled the chase to be completed with 11 balls to spare.

Matt Parkinson’s 17 runs for two wickets spell also played a huge role and the Originals’ batting rescued them in a tricky chase early on. However, the effort on the bowling end could have been certainly better. With the last game to seal the deal, the Originals will fancy their chances but the top-order of the Rockets has been destroying the competition more often than not.

The Rockets won both battles during the Group Stage. One of the wins involved the Rockets chasing the humungous total of 190 behind an electric 98 runs off 44 balls performance by Dawid Malan. 

The Rockets were on fire during both games against the Originals. Sure, not having Shamsi hurts them but their batting has been perhaps the best in this year’s Hundred. The Originals have the momentum but if their top order falls, there are cracks to be exploited. This game can swing the Rockets way with the way they are playing because even their middle-order looks stacked while the Originals have been prone to stutters. I believe the Rockets will win this in a big way.