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Super Smash 2021-22 | Wellington Firebirds vs Northern Knights | Match 30 Preview, Predictions, Fantasy XI

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Yes, indeed we have reached the last match of the league stage in the 2021-22 season's Super Smash competition. The two teams who are already qualified for the playoffs are going head-to-head against each other on January 24 at the Basin Reserve in Wellington. Yes, we are talking about Wellington Firebirds and Northern Knights. This will be the 30th match in the tournament.

Wellington is in third place with 20 points from 9 matches and Northern Knights are the table toppers with 30 points from the same number of matches as their opponents.  

Recently, in the 24th match, these two have met each other. This was a low-scoring affair. Wellington was crushed down by Northern Knights who won the match by a comfortable margin of 6 wickets.

Wellington is having a see-saw of a season. They have won 5 out of 9 matches and will play the eliminator on January 27, 2022, against Canterbury Kings. Though they have qualified for the eliminator they will not take this game lightly as many parts of the game can be improved. 

Since the match is against the strongest team in the competition they have to grind hard till the very last moment but they have the squad to do that. With the likes of Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Jimmy Neesham, Tom Blundell, and Rachin Ravindra in the squad they can push the opposition to the extreme.  

Northern Knights, on the other hand, don't have many headaches heading into this. They have been on the winning side from the last 7 matches and will look to continue the same. They have the perfect side to do what is required in a match. They have earned the rights to host the finale on their home ground which will take place on January 29, 2022, at the Seddon Park in Hamilton.

They have a balanced squad that covers almost all the bases. They will go with an unchanged squad from their previous game. Knights have the services of Tim Seifert, Jeet Raval, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, and Trent Boult. The names don't stop here as their entire squad is in top gear.  

So, then it should be an intriguing contest as it's a near warm-up match for these two before the playoffs rather than a league match.   

Match Details

Wellington Firebirds vs Northern Knights - 30th Match

Date and Time: January 24, 2022, 7:10 AM IST

Venue: Basin Reserve, Wellington

Broadcast: Fan Code

Pitch Report

The Basin Reserve pitch will be a balanced one, both for batters and bowlers. The average score batting first here is around 160. Toss doesn’t really matter here as both batting first and bowling first yields good results.

Weather Conditions

According to forecasts, there will be no rain and will be sunny throughout the match.  

Probable Playing XI

Wellington Firebirds

Finn Allen (wk), Devon Conway, Tom Blundell, Michael Bracewell (c), Jimmy Neesham, Rachin Ravindra, Nathan Smith, Logan van Beek, Hamish Bennett, Peter Younghusband, Ben Sears.

Northern Knights

Tim Seifert (wk), Katene Clarke, Jeet Raval (c), Colin de Grandhomme, Henry Cooper, Mitchell Santner, Scott Kuggeleijn, Anurag Verma, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Trent Boult.

 CE Fantasy XI

Katene Clarke, Jeet Raval, Colin de Grandhomme, Trent Boult, Mitchell Santner, Rachin Ravindra, Finn Allen, Tom Blundell, Hamish Bennett

Captain- Tim Seifert

 Vice-Captain- Devon Conway

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