Second-placed Welsh Fire, winners of four of their five matches, travel to Old Trafford as firm favourites against a Manchester Super Giants side that has lost three in a row, on Wednesday, August 5, at 3:00 PM local (7:30 PM IST).
Manchester’s promising start, two wins from their opening two matches, has completely unravelled, dropping them to fifth in the table.
Welsh Fire, by contrast, have won their last three meetings against this exact opponent and arrive with Phil Salt and Joe Root both among the runs.
MO vs WEF Match Details
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | Manchester Super Giants vs Welsh Fire, 21st Match |
| Series | The Hundred Men’s Competition 2026 |
| Date | Wednesday, 5 August 2026 |
| Time | 3:00 PM BST local / 2:00 PM GMT / 7:30 PM IST |
| Venue | Old Trafford, Manchester. Manchester Super Giants’ home ground. |
| Format | 100-ball innings per side, five sets of 20 balls, no bowler allowed more than two sets. |
| Captains | Aiden Markram (Manchester Super Giants), Phil Salt (Welsh Fire) |
| Form | MO: 2 wins, 3 losses, fifth in the table, having lost three matches in a row after a promising start. Jos Buttler remains a bright spot, with 226 runs across 5 innings at a strike rate of 167.40. WEF: 4 wins, 1 loss, second in the table. Rachin Ravindra has struck 145 runs in 5 innings, including a best of 98 against MI London, while Joe Root has settled quickly at the top of the order. |
| H2H | Welsh Fire have won the last three meetings between these two sides, giving them a clear psychological edge heading into this fixture. |
Dream11 Team for MO vs WEF, 21st Match
Top Picks for MO vs WEF, 21st Match
| Player | Team | Role | Key Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jos Buttler | MO | Captain / WK | Captain pick. 226 runs in 5 innings at SR 167, in outstanding form all season. At 2x. |
| Joe Root | WEF | VC / Batter | Vice-Captain pick. Settled top-order anchor for the in-form side. At 1.5x. |
| Phil Salt | WEF | WK-Batter | Welsh Fire’s captain, competition’s all-time leading run-scorer. |
| Rachin Ravindra | WEF | All-Rounder | 145 runs in 5 innings, including a best of 98 this season. |
| Aiden Markram | MO | All-Rounder | Manchester’s captain, capable of contributing with both bat and part-time bowling. |
Pitch Report
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Venue | Old Trafford, Manchester. Manchester Super Giants’ home ground. |
| Pitch Type | Generally one of the bouncier pitches in England, which seamers tend to enjoy, though in the shortest format conditions have usually favoured batters, leading to high-scoring contests this season. |
| Scoring | Matches at this ground have been high-scoring so far this season, with totals well past 150 in recent fixtures. This is worth cross-checking against ESPNcricinfo Statsguru before publishing. |
| Pace vs Spin | Seam bowlers should find some bounce and early assistance, with Noor Ahmad and Rachin Ravindra’s spin options likely to play a role through the middle overs on both sides. |
| Toss Factor | With this ground generally favouring batters in T20 cricket, expect the toss winner to look to bat first. |
Weather Report
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Temperature | Cooler than recent matches, with a high around 19°C (66°F). |
| Sky | Mostly cloudy through the day. |
| Rain Chance | Low, roughly 20 percent. A full, uninterrupted match looks likely. |
| Humidity | Moderate, with some chance of added movement for the seamers under cloud cover. |
| Overall | Good batting and bowling conditions for a clash between a struggling home side and an in-form Welsh Fire outfit. |
MO vs WEF Toss Prediction
With Old Trafford generally rewarding batters this season, expect the toss winner to look to bat first and post a total.
**If Aiden Markram (Manchester Super Giants) wins, **expect him to bat first at home, trusting Jos Buttler and Heinrich Klaasen to fire before Noor Ahmad and Gus Atkinson try to defend a total and finally arrest the losing run.
**If Phil Salt (Welsh Fire) wins, **expect him to also bat first, using Joe Root and himself to set the tone before Rachin Ravindra and Matthew Short push on, backed by Chris Woakes and Sam Cook to defend a total.
Injury and Team News
Manchester Super Giants:
Manchester have lost three matches in a row after a promising 2-0 start, dropping to fifth in the table. Jos Buttler’s individual form remains the one constant through this rough patch, and captain Aiden Markram will be desperate for the rest of the side to find consistency against a red-hot Welsh Fire outfit. No injury concerns have been reported for the squad ahead of this fixture.
**Key players: **Aiden Markram (c, leading a side in need of a response), Jos Buttler (captain pick, 226 runs this season), Heinrich Klaasen (explosive middle-order finisher), Noor Ahmad (world-class left-arm wrist spin), Gus Atkinson (frontline seam-bowling option), Josh Tongue (part of the pace attack).
**Predicted Manchester Super Giants XI: **Jos Buttler (wk), Max Holden, Aiden Markram (c), Heinrich Klaasen, Leus du Plooy, Liam Dawson, Tom Hartley, Noor Ahmad, Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker.
Welsh Fire:
Welsh Fire sit second in the table on the back of a 4-1 start, having won their last three meetings against this exact opponent. Captain Phil Salt continues to lead from the front, with Joe Root and Rachin Ravindra both key contributors to the side’s strong campaign. No injury concerns have been reported for the squad ahead of this fixture.
**Key players: **Phil Salt (c, competition’s all-time leading run-scorer), Joe Root (vice-captain pick, settled top-order anchor), Rachin Ravindra (145 runs this season, best of 98), Matthew Short (versatile top-order option), Chris Woakes (experienced seam-bowling option), Sam Cook (part of a deep pace attack).
**Predicted Welsh Fire XI: **Phil Salt (c, wk), Jordan Cox, Joe Root, Rachin Ravindra, Matthew Short, Marco Jansen, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Chris Woakes, Lockie Ferguson, Sam Cook, Asa Tribe.
